Shattered Worlds
by Aria6
Summary: Aizen attempted to unseat the Soul King, and succeeded in bringing about his death. But he could not harness the power of the throne, and was destroyed by it, leaving no one in the heavenly seat. Destruction engulfed the three worlds, warping everything and everyone it touched. How can the three worlds be saved when the savior cannot remember? Grimm/Ichi Ichi/Grimm
1. Chapter 1

"Do you ever wonder what happened, Grimm?"

"No." The big man grunted as he labored beneath a rock. During his time in this shithole, he'd learned some very important facts about rocks. They only came in two sizes, too large to be carried comfortably and too small to be carried comfortably. Right now he was working on the too large. Ichigo had a basket of the too small, and he wasn't sure who was getting the better end of the deal. All he knew was that the entire package sucked.

"I wonder all the time. I almost remember their faces… their names… and then it all slips away from me." His orange haired buddy sounded so sad. Grimmjow desperately wanted to punch him in the face. Unfortunately, Mr. Rock had other plans. "Are they here too? Are they looking for me?"

"I don't give a shit. You need more rocks in your fucking basket if you can babble about lame ass shit." Grimmjow snarled as he finally got the rock into the pile. A bald guy looked it over before heaving it up and carrying it to the masons working on the wall. Ichigo dumped his basket in another pile. Grimmjow wasn't sure, but he thought those small rocks would be going towards mortar. That shit was for the masons, and right now he was wishing he was a fucking mason. It had to be easier than carrying the crap for them. "Give me that basket. You get a big one this time." Ichigo passed him over the basket.

"Don't complain to me when your hands start to bleed." He muttered, rubbing his hands against the fabric of his pants. Grimmjow just grunted. He didn't think that was going to happen. His skin was preternaturally hard, something his memory vaguely told him was 'hierro'.

His mind was full of vague memories and thoughts, but Grimmjow really didn't give a damn. As far as he was concerned, his life had begun two years ago. That was when something had _happened._ The bunny rabbit girl claimed that someone had tried to become Soul King – he had no idea what that was – and failed, but in failing had torn the three worlds apart. He'd asked her what in fuck the three worlds were, but she couldn't answer. She couldn't even remember her own name so who knew how reliable any of what she was spouting was?

Maybe it was true though. Maybe that's why no one could remember much beyond two years. Grimmjow knew he wasn't two years old, so sure as shit something had happened. All he had from before that were a few vague memories of his orange haired twit of a friend. They were so vague that he wasn't even sure the jackass had _been_ a friend before, but it had just seemed to happen. Maybe it was because they were so glad to see anything familiar.

"Ichigo, Grimmjow!" Grimmjow looked up as bunny rabbit girl ran over. She was wearing a white and blue dress, her black hair slicked back and tied with ribbons. "I brought you lunch!" She had a plate of toasted grubs and early vegetables. That was the current crop and Grimmjow couldn't understand why some people were all squeamish about it. You ate what you could when you could, as far as he was concerned. And the farmers were picking the grubs off the real crops so why let the meat go to waste?

"It's that time already?" Ichigo glanced up at the sky and blinked. "I guess it is. Thanks Bunny." She smiled as she passed over the food. That was actually her name now, since all she really had was her love of bunny rabbits. Grimmjow couldn't even remember the last time he'd seen a real rabbit. They were like a myth or something.

Settling down in the shade, they ate and drank at a leisurely pace. The food didn't sit well if you bolted it, especially the frothy beer. It was some horrible concoction made out of fermented mushrooms and the only reason they drank it was the damn water was unsafe. Grimmjow shuddered to himself as he remembered what had happened to the last guy to try the water. Shitting yourself to death was a bad way to die.

"We need to get the wall up soon. Don't know how many nights like yesterday I can take." Ichigo said quietly and Grimmjow grunted. He'd actually had a ton of fun last night, but he had a taste for blood. And even for him, the carnage in the two houses that had gotten hit had been off putting.

The little town of Santa Maria was situated in a very good spot. It sat on the edge of a bay which fed into the ocean. The ocean was damned dangerous, teeming with freakish monsters that could and would bite a fishing boat in half. But the bay formed a natural protective barrier, since it went shallow just before dumping into the sea. Only fish, crustaceans and sea otters lived here. Even when the sea was being a bitch, the waves in the bay were limited. It was a fisherman's dream. Added to that was the oyster industry. At first, it had just been fishermen pillaging the wild oyster beds. But then someone had pointed out that the bay wasn't very large and unless they wanted to completely fuck it up, they had better portion out the bay bottom and start farming the damn things. That had gotten ugly for a while before Grimmjow, Ichigo and the rest of the armed forces had laid down the law and parcelled out the bottom.

The military ran Santa Maria. Not in everything, of course. There was a small court that handled all kinds of mundane shit. But when it came to the food supply and the shit that could kill them, the Division ran things. They called it the Eleventh, which made Grimmjow wonder what had happened to one through nine? No one knew. But the bald dude and the guy with the feathers had called it the Eleventh, and they'd been almost the first people here so the name had stuck.

Right now, absolutely everyone who could be spared was building a wall around the sea end of Santa Maria. Until recently, the sea had formed a barrier to any incursions. Unfortunately, the latest horrors to emerge from the forest could swim and they'd proved it by ripping two whole families to shreds before the Division could respond. Grimmjow watched as a cursing fisherman finally got his boat on rollers and with the help of a couple horses, began hauling the thing behind the burgeoning wall. Some of the fishermen were taking their chances on the beasts leaving the boats alone, but a lot of them weren't.

"I'm done. You ready?" He asked and Ichigo nodded. They left their plates sitting there – someone would clean them up – and went back to their labours. From the looks of it, the wall wouldn't be finished tonight. It was going to take days, which meant they would be pulling double duty patrolling the unfinished section at night. Just another fun day in the Eleventh.

"Grimmjow!" That was the feather dude. What was his name again? Yumichika, that was it. "Ichigo! You two need to go get some sleep."

"We've drawn second shift?" Grimmjow groaned at the thought. That was the worst. Yumichika nodded as Ichigo wiped a bit of sweat off his forehead. "Fuck. Fine. Where's Bunny?" She knew something called 'kido' and could put them both to sleep instantly. That was damned useful when things got all fucked up and insomnia was not an option.

"Over at the cantena, bringing out more food. The sleeping area is there too." He said and they both nodded. Yumichika took the basket from Grimmjow, muttering something about his nails. Grimmjow grinned. He'd never met a warrior as vain as Yumi before, but the bastard was a good fighter. He respected him for that.

It didn't take them long to get settled on the floor. Bunny bent over him, touching his forehead, and Grimmjow grunted as he felt the sleep steal over him. He hated this kind of sleep. It wasn't natural and his body knew it, trying to reject it. But it didn't work – it never worked – and he fell it like falling into a pit. It felt like no time passed before Bunny was over him again, breaking the spell.

"Ungh." He grunted as he pushed himself up, shaking off the lingering cobwebs as she went to work on Ichigo. The redhead groaned as he sat up, rubbing his head. Grimmjow offered him a hand and Ichigo took it, pulling himself to his feet.

For Grimmjow, the night was fun. For everyone else, it was a total nightmare. Several strong packs of the creatures swam through the waters of the bay, and the blue haired man fought them with a maniacal laugh. The monsters were covered in white bone and had golden eyes. They seemed vaguely familiar to him, but also not. There was something wrong about them. Shrugging it aside he decapitated one and glanced around for more opponents.

"Nice job Kurosaki." He congratulated his friend. Corpses were piled around him and Ichigo smiled at him as he eyed them consideringly. "I think I got one more than you, but I'm not sure." It was always a bit hard to tell. Ichigo's smile widened into a grin.

"So it's a competition? You're such a psycho." He said with a laugh and Grimmjow grinned before turning his attention back to the bay.

"You know it. But no time to flirt, there's more of them coming." Ichigo scowled then and looked back at the water. Sure enough, there was something bobbing in it and coming closer. Grimmjow's eyes widened as it slowly came out of the water, revealing its true shape. It was a bit hard to see in the dark but Grimmjow decided 'really big with tentacles on' was sufficient.

"Oh fuck." Reaching down to his belt he grabbed one of his grappling hooks. He'd found the contraption in the woods, abandoned and rusting, and had rehabilitated it and adopted it for his own. It was sort of a harness, with a metal thing that could shoot grappling hooks onto damn near anything. Along with his weak flying ability, he could pull off some amazing shit. Right now he used it to get onto the half-finished wall. He needed a better vantage point. There were screams and everyone with a distance weapon was lighting off. Yumichika was using his power, too, and dozens of beautiful blue vines tried to entrap the thing. It didn't work, not even remotely. The monster just roared and the vines exploded in sparks, overwhelmed by the force that had just been pushed through them.

"Lacerate!" Grimmjow snarled and clawed his hands into the air. Little darts of blue power shot from his fingertips, hitting the creature. It didn't even seem to _notice._ "Fuck you too dirtbag!" Using his grappling hooks and his flying to give him a little boost, Grimmjow flung himself into the air. He landed on the creature's back, trying to get a grip on the boney plates. They were slick with water so it was damned difficult.

It got worse as the creature realized he was there and completely freaked. Maybe it was just his weight or maybe it had a weak spot back there, he would never be sure. But it tilted alarmingly and Grimmjow's eyes went wide as he realized what it was about to do. He barely had time to scream before the monster flipped itself over, right back into the bay.

He went with it. The water closed over him and he just barely managed to avoid being crushed, but not being pinned. He struggled frantically, caught in some kind of hollow between the creature and the rocky bottom of the bay. Silt billowed into the air and the oyster frame crunched, sending bivalves to the murky depths where they would likely flourish.

_I'm going to die here._ Grimmjow's struggles intensified for a moment, but he didn't have much air. He'd wasted the one moment he could have got some on a scream. He used lacerate again and at this range the blue nails cut deep, but the thing didn't budge. His lungs screamed for air and Grimmjow couldn't stand it anymore. He had to breathe. He had to.

He couldn't. All that came was choking water, filling his stomach and giving him more misery as his lungs begged desperately for what they couldn't have. The pain gradually began to fade and his struggles eased as a strange lassitude came over him. Grimmjow knew he was going to die, he was well on his way, but he just couldn't care much anymore. Blue eyes blinked slowly and he suddenly registered the absence of pressure. Where had the monster gone? But his fading mind and body couldn't take advantage of the lack. He was floating away and he would never be back.

Feeling almost free, Grimmjow slipped away into darkness.


	2. Recovery and Clams

Ichigo gently ran his fingers through thick blue hair. It felt like the pelt of an alley cat, coarse and rough.

Rough. Everything about Grimmjow was rough. His rough voice, his rough hands and his rough passions. And where he wasn't rough, he was hard and sharp. Hard muscles, sharp canine teeth in that wicked grin, his burning blue eyes. There was nothing soft or gentle about Grimmjow.

"Come back to me Grimm. Please, come back." Ichigo whispered to the limp body. Grimmjow was breathing and his heart was beating, but that didn't necessarily mean much. He'd seen drowning cases before. Grimmjow might be dead and his body just hadn't caught up yet. Or worse, he might end up brain damaged. Ichigo wasn't sure Grimmjow would be able to cope with that. He was a terrible patient, chafing at any injury. How would he handle something permanent, crippling?

Ichigo let his gaze linger on that hard face, the familiar feral beauty that had called to him from the moment he'd set eyes on the other man. He knew Grimmjow, knew him deep in his soul. He didn't have many memories from before the shattering and he cherished the few he had. Bunny brought some back to him, but not the way Grimmjow did. It was like they had a deeper, more passionate connection.

Ichigo had a feeling it hadn't been love, though. He vaguely recalled fighting Grimmjow, seeing that psychotic grin at very close range. If they'd been enemies, though, it didn't bother him. They were friends now. And Grimm was every bit as loyal a friend as he was a terrifying enemy. He petted the blue hair again then froze as he heard a rasping cough. Startled brown eyes looked down and met glazed and pained blue.

"I really… got fucked up, ya?" Grimmjow croaked and Ichigo could hardly breathe through the lump in his throat. "You never… touch me… like that…" Ichigo blinked as he realized his friend was right. He never showed Grimm any tenderness either. That wasn't their way. But then he shoved the thought aside, wrapping his arms around his best friend's shoulders.

"We weren't sure you were still alive." Ichigo sniffed, burying his face against Grimmjow's chest. His friend made a small sound of discomfort, probably from all the bruises, but he ignored it. "You bastard! Don't scare me like that again." He said harshly and Grimm laughed weakly.

"Try not to… where's my shit?" He'd noticed the lack of a leather coat and harness. Ichigo huffed a laugh before pointing at a nearby chair. The brown leather coat was hung on the back, fully recovered from being dunked in the sea. The grappling hook machine had been cleaned until it was almost shining and they'd made a new harness for it. The old one had been torn away.

"Your shit came through better than you did. Are you hungry?" He asked. Grimmjow had been unconscious for almost a day, he had to be hungry and thirsty. Sure enough, the big man licked his lips.

"Yeah." He pushed himself up with a grunt and Ichigo let him. "The cantina?"

"Yes." That was where everyone in the Eleventh got their meals, unless they wanted to pay extra for something better. "We've got an oyster stew on the cook." He said with a small smile as Grimmjow looked surprised. This wasn't the usual time of year for fresh oysters. "You completely ruined a section of the oyster beds, so what the oystermen could salvage went to the unit."

"I ruined it? Bitch please." Grimmjow grumbled before rubbing his arms with a wince. Ichigo could imagine how much pain he was in.

They made their way to the cantina and Ichigo blushed slightly as people paused to wave at them. Then he frowned as he noticed a tightness around Grimmjow's eyes, a bitter twist to his mouth. He was very in tune with his best friend's moods and he knew this wasn't a good one. What was eating at him?

"So you saved the day, huh?" Grimmjow said humorously, but there was an edge to it. Ichigo's eyes narrowed as he understood what was going on. They were usually good natured about their competition, but the rivalry between them was real. Grimmjow felt like he'd fucked up and Ichigo had rescued him, and he was humiliated and resentful.

"We both did." He corrected his friend and Grimmjow shot him a suspicious look. "When you landed on it you made it flip, Grimm. It seemed terrified of you for some reason. That exposed its belly, which was a lot softer than the rest of it and I made the kill. But if you hadn't made it flip more people might have died." Brown eyes met blue and there was no give in either of them. Grimmjow finally grunted and looked away but Ichigo could see some of the tension leaving him.

They got to the cantina then and dozens of glad cries greeted them. There was plenty of back slapping and congratulations for them both and Ichigo was relieved to see the tension drain out of Grimmjow completely. They both got seats at one of the benches and Grimmjow practically inhaled his oyster stew. It was served with a side dish of pickled beans from last season's harvest. Ichigo waved off the stew and settled for the vegetables. He'd eaten a bit earlier and didn't need more.

"Shit, this stuff is vile." Grimmjow took a long swig of the beer before grimacing. Ichigo nodded sympathetically. "Say, if we're both heroes are we getting a bonus?"

"Haha, nice try. No, we're not. However, you're on sick leave for a week. Bunny's afraid you might get a lung infection or dysentery." Grimmjow had swallowed a lot of bay water and while he'd puked most of it up, there was still a chance he'd picked up something nasty. And a lung infection was always a possible side effect of near drowning, since some of the water did get in the lungs. Grimmjow made a face but didn't protest. He hated being put on sick leave.

"Guess I'll have to take my nonexistent bonus and hang out at the Pub 'n Grub." Grimmjow muttered and Ichigo laughed.

"Yeah, I guess. Just don't lose the rent money dicing." Ichigo said before sipping his beer. He wished he could join Grimm at the pub, but now that his best friend was conscious he would be called back to duty. There had been no attacks the night before but that could always change.

Ichigo sighed to himself as he thought about the state of the world. Since whatever had _happened,_ two years ago, things had been hard. During the day, it was almost safe as long as you didn't enter the forest. The fields were mostly safe to work, so the farmers had only a few guards. The foresters were another matter. They got an escort from the Division every time they went to get firewood, and they needed it. Often the Division had to do the foresting themselves, when there weren't any civilian volunteers.

It was hard to get people to volunteer to leave the town, and Ichigo couldn't really blame them. The lands outside the walls were full of horrors. They mostly came out at night, strange spirits and frightful creatures that seemed to live to devour humans. Giants, trolls, bone fiends, things that were so unique they had no names… it was all here, waiting to claim and kill the unwary. And that made things hard for the town in another way. There was no trade at all, with other towns. There was hardly any contact, although the occasional, very lucky person did trickle in. Strangers were unusual but not unknown in Santa Maria.

They ate mostly in silence, but it was a good silence. Companionable and happy. When they were done, Grimmjow went home to rest and Ichigo joined the work on the wall. There was always so much to do.

His stint guarding the half-finished wall was uneventful. Ichigo wondered if the first attack had wiped the new horrors out, or if they were just afraid of Grimmjow. He grinned at the thought. Everyone was afraid of Grimm, but he loved the crazy bastard.

"You thinking about your boyfriend?" Ikkaku asked and Ichigo's grin turned into a scowl.

"He's not my boyfriend." He snapped back, knowing it was something of a lie. He and Grimmjow lived together and as far as Ichigo knew, no one else ever warmed his bed. Ikkaku laughed.

"That would come as news to half the women in the town! Hey girls! Open season on – mph!" Ichigo caught him, a hand firmly on his mouth. "Mphmphmph!"

"Don't you fucking dare." He growled, surprising himself with the jealous rage he was feeling. Did he really feel that strongly about Grimmjow? They'd never discussed their feelings. It wasn't the sort of thing either one of them would do. He let go when Ikkaku nodded and the bald man gave him a shit eating grin.

"Not your boyfriend, eh? Such a liar Kurosaki." Ichigo just scowled and turned his attention back onto the bay. The sun was rising and their relief was starting to show up, but that didn't mean he should relax his watch. "I knew you weren't a bachelor pair like me and Yumichika."

"Yeah, yeah." He grumbled. A lot of people thought Ikkaku and Yumi might be gay, but they really weren't and most of the prostitutes in the city knew it. "He's still not my boyfriend." To Ichigo, that would require Grimmjow actually agreeing to be his boyfriend. Maybe he should ask. Ikkaku laughed.

"Semantics!" His relief arrived then and Ichigo was able to quit the wall, leaving the argument behind him. But he pondered it was he walked home. Did he want Grimmjow to be his boyfriend? His heart twisted at the thought. What would he do if Grimm said no?

When he got home he found his mate curled up in bed, coughing and sometimes drinking from a mug of warm liquid. Ichigo paused a moment to just look at him and frowned at the suspicious dampness in his hair. A gentle touch of his hand confirmed it. Grimmjow had a fever. Bright blue eyes flicked up and Ichigo was relieved to see they were completely normal, the usual hard glint in place. When Grimmjow got really sick his eyes became hazy and unfocused, so the fever couldn't be too bad.

"Hey Ichigo." His voice was very raspy, though. "Think that shitty water gave me something. Bunny says it ain't bad though, just need some herb tea." He lifted the mug and Ichigo gave him a smile.

"That's good. Can you scoot over a little?" He asked and Grimmjow made room on the bed. It was a mattress filled with goose down and set on the floor. Geese came to the bay every year, and every year they hunted a share of them. "Thanks." Ichigo sighed as he settled into the warm mattress. It felt wonderful under his tired body. "Grimm?" He murmured. It was probably a stupid time to ask, when he was beyond exhausted and Grimmjow was sick. But the question was praying at his mind. "Are you my boyfriend?" There was a warm chuckle and Ichigo blinked as Grimmjow was suddenly looming over him, a wicked smile on his face. Then warm lips pressed against his and Ichigo sank into the kiss, ignoring any possibility of infection as he savored the taste of his lover's mouth.

"Silly berry. Of course I am." Grimmjow murmured in his ear and Ichigo smiled before yawning. "But I'm too sick to fuck ya to prove it. Go to sleep."

"Yeah…" He was too tired for that celebratory screw, anyway. But he was sure it would happen. Ichigo smiled to himself as he closed his eyes and let sleep take him.

This was Grimmjow, after all.

* * *

Ichigo sighed as he stirred. Sleep reluctantly pulled away from him as the sun touched his bed, prying at his eyes. He was vaguely aware of pressure on his thighs and hips, a warm feeling of arousal. As awareness became more clear Ichigo realized he was more than aroused. There was…

"Grimmjow?" He blinked then blushed as he saw that familiar face, shockingly close. "Hey! What the hell?" He would have squirmed but Grimmjow had his cock in his hand, as well as his own. They were well lubed and Ichigo groaned as Grimmjow stroked them both, moving his hips provocatively.

"You know you like it when I take care of yer morning wood." Grimmjow said with a toothy grin.

"Yeah, but I like to be awake first – nngh…" Ichigo was vaguely aware that he was losing it. He had no inhibitions in the morning and who knew how long Grimmjow had been stimulating him? He arched up into those teasing hands with a whimper then gasped as warm lips silenced him with a deep, passionate kiss.

He didn't last very long after that, but it didn't matter. He arched and cried out as he hit his peak and he felt Grimmjow stiffen, heard the other man's breath catch before he came too. Sticky fluids painted his chest and abs, and Ichigo reached up to gently trace a circle on Grimmjow's belly.

"Why do you always do that?" Grimmjow asked as he picked up a rag and started cleaning off the mess. Ichigo blinked at him. "Touch me there, like that. Sort of a weird place unless you really like my happy patch." Ichigo blushed and pulled his hand away. He did like Grimm's 'happy patch' but not that much.

"I just… have a strange feeling that there should be a hole there." The image was so clear sometimes. A black hole, passing through his lover's body as he laughed maniacally at something. Grimmjow quirked an eyebrow at him, not understanding.

"You think I should be dead then?" He said teasingly and Ichigo scowled before sitting up.

"No, alive with a hole passing through you… oh, nevermind. It's all stupid anyway." He said as Grimmjow grinned at him, preparing to make some horrible joke about holes no doubt. Ichigo looked into his face for a moment, completely human and untouched by white bone. Why did he feel like bones should be involved? He had no idea. "Let's take a shower."

"Nice hot shower, that would be nice." Grimmjow used the rag to blow his nose, which left Ichigo feeling more than a little grossed out. Then he brought it with him, clearly planning to clean it out in the shower. "But I'm gonna get a cold shower, aren't I?" He asked glumly and Ichigo laughed.

"All we've ever had here is cold showers. I don't even know why you ask." He said cheerfully. From what his friend had said, Grimmjow's memories of the time before were mostly sensations and hot showers were at the top of the list. Along with the feel of his sword in his hand and the wind in his hair, but that was pretty normal for his friend. "I'm doing more wall building today. What trouble were you thinking of getting into?" He asked and Grimmjow grunted as he began cleaning off his hair.

"Not much exciting." His hair dampened, Grimmjow moved so he could grab the soap and let Ichigo take a turn under the spray. They had the practice of taking a shower at the same time down to an art form. "I was just gonna take it easy. Spend some time at the park playing tiles with all the old farts, then go to the bar. I wish I could go diving for sea urchins but…" He shrugged and Ichigo scowled at the idea as they switched places again. Grimmjow rinsed the soap out of his hair as Ichigo soaped up his.

"Not when you're still sick." He said firmly. Grimmjow clearly wasn't feeling it much, but he still had the sniffles and a minor fever. The bay was still part of the sea and the water was never what you could call warm, another dunk wouldn't be good for him. "And you can't go hunting." That was Grimmjow's other main entertainment, entering the forest looking for whatever trouble found him. Sparring too, of course, but right now everyone else was busy. That didn't leave much for the blue haired man to do.

"I know, I'm not stupid." Grimmjow groused as he stepped out of the shower, grabbing a towel and drying himself as Ichigo went under the icy water. "Just sitting in the sun in the park'll be good for me. Maybe I'll borrow a book from Bunny." Grimm wasn't much of a reader but he could do it when he was bored. Ichigo relaxed a little, glad to see that his boyfriend was being sensible. "Ask Ikkaku and Yumi if you can get some leave when the wall is up, hey?"

"Of course." Ichigo was hopeful he would get a day or two when the seawall was finally finished. "Maybe we can get something sweet." He said optimistically, although he had his doubts. They grew sugar beets and the climate was favorable for them, but they were a luxury item, secondary to the real food crops. Sweets were always hideously expensive.

"Eh. I'd rather have a nice big venison steak." Grimmjow sighed a little at the thought as he got dressed. "With a baked potato with butter and salt, and a big plate of carrots and those little broccoli things…"

"The sweets are more likely." Ichigo observed. What Grimmjow was asking for was nearly impossible this time of year. The carrots were all pickled and dried and the broccoli things weren't around at all. Not to mention that butter was in quite short supply. They raised goats for it but the fodder was always limited and letting them forage in the forest was out of the question.

"Yeah." Grimmjow muttered as he put down the ground up fish meal that served as cat food. Their cat, a huge black tom cat named Pantera, rubbed against his leg before accepting a rough caress from the big man. "Well, good luck with the rocks." He said and Ichigo smiled as he went out the door.

"Good luck with the old men. Try not to let them kick your ass at tiles." Ichigo said teasingly and his last sight of Grimmjow before he closed the door was his friend and lover giving him the finger. Grinning, he went down to the docks to get to work.

He had a boyfriend. Even with a hard day's work ahead of him, that was something to be happy about.

* * *

Ichigo slowly savored the hard candy, sucking the caramel sweet and enjoying the way it was dissolving on his tongue. Grimmjow's eyes were half closed and he was leaning back against the bench, lost in the pleasure of his own caramel.

"S'funny. I have this feeling… I used to take these things for granted. They were everywhere and they were cheap." Ichigo murmured, shifting his sweet from one cheek to the other. "I crunched them and they were gone in seconds. Now I fight to make them last just a little bit longer. It's funny, don't you think?"

"You know what's really funny? The way I want to fuck up your face when you talk about that shit." Grimmjow's big hand suddenly fisted in his shirt and Ichigo nearly swallowed his candy in surprise as he was kissed thoroughly. "There. Now you have two." He blinked and his mouth nearly fell open as he realized his friend had indeed transferred what was left of his candy to him during the kiss.

"…I can't decide if you're disgusting as hell or very thoughtful." He said, bemused as he finished off the two candies. Grimmjow grinned, hooking his arms over the back of the bench. "Or both."

"Both, for sure. Ya about ready to go for a swim?" Grimmjow asked and Ichigo nodded. His lover's fever had broken and the sniffles were gone, so they were planning to use their free day diving in the bay. They couldn't touch the oyster beds – that was theft – but no one owned the truly wild creatures like the clams, sea urchins or the spiny mussels. If they were lucky they could bring them to the Pub 'n Grub and get them cooked up for a small fee.

That was necessary because like most of the Eleventh, they lived in a small bachelor apartment. They had no cooking tools, no wood burning stove. They either got the free meals at the cantina or paid at the pub. However, if they brought their own ingredients the pub could make them something nice for a minimal charge. If they brought extra, it might even be free.

Soon they were both wading into the waters of the bay and Ichigo smiled as Grimmjow cursed at the chill. He took a deep breath then dove into the bay, shuddering violently at the cold of the water. He knew it wasn't really that bad, but he wasn't used to it after the warmth of the sun.

The bay was so calm it was almost glassy and the two amateur divers had no problem finding prey. The urchins were elusive but the clams were everywhere, thriving in the disturbed oyster grounds. Every clam they found went into their buckets, filled with water to keep them fresh.

"That was good." Grimmjow said approvingly as he stretched out at the end of the pier, letting the sun dry him. Ichigo paused to admire him. The way the water beaded on his pale skin was simply gorgeous and he found himself moving, dipping his head to lick away a trail of water that was pooling in the hollow of Grimmjow's throat. "…Ya keep that up I'm gonna fuck ya right here and now." Ichigo lifted his head to see his lover staring at him with a hot and very sexy gaze. He decided to take the challenge, just to see what Grimm would do, and licked away another trail of water. "Shit." Grimmjow muttered, glancing towards the wall. It was a fine sunny day so there were all kinds of people out and about. "You know what this means, right?"

"No, wh – HEY!" He just barely managed to avoid a fist to the face and suddenly remembered. Fighting turned Grimm on nearly as much as foreplay. Then a grin crossed his face as hard arms locked onto him, shoving him down. Two could play this game.

They wrestled across the pier, heedless of possible splinters. There was room for nothing in their world but each other and Ichigo panted as he managed to pin Grimmjow briefly. But only for a moment before the blue haired man surged against his grip and Ichigo's eyes went wide as he realized they'd both lost track of where they were. It was tricky with the pier and they were much too close to the edge now.

"Grimm, no - !" Was all he got out before Grimmjow lost his balance. He tried to save himself, grabbing Ichigo's arm and Ichigo reciprocated, trying to yank him back. But his lover was the heavier of the two and he didn't have time to properly set himself. They both lost their balance then and landed in the water with a hearty splash. "Agh!" The cold of the bay immediately took care of rising libidos and Ichigo cursed as he splashed to the surface. "Damnit Grimm! Now we're all wet again." The whole point of resting on the pier had been to get dry.

"Yep. More sunbathing, what a terrible thing." His roommate said cheerfully and Ichigo had to smile. He was right.

There were worse things in the world than sitting in the sun and letting the water dry away.


	3. To Become a King

"We're going to be late."

"Don't care." Grimmjow grunted as he kissed a trail along the side of a warm, pale throat. Ichigo's heavy groan made him swallow hard. "Pants." It might be more practical to just turn Ichigo towards the wall and fuck him from behind, but then he wouldn't get to see his face.

They were sneaking in a quick fuck before the festivities started. And by festivities, he meant guarding the loggers on their trip into the woods. The whole place was running low on firewood again and it was their mission to get some. But that could wait a bit. Grimmjow knew for a fact that the party wouldn't start without them.

"Grimm – ah!" Ichigo grunted, closing his eyes as he wrapped his legs around Grimmjow's waist. The blue haired man helped him out with that, keeping a good grip on his thigh with one hand as the other explored the sweet cleft of his lover's ass. "Oh…" Ichigo's soft moan was like ambrosia on his ears. Grimmjow licked his lips as he slid oily fingers into that puckered hole. It wouldn't really take too much to get Kurosaki ready for him, but the preliminaries were important. The last time he'd skimped, Ichigo hadn't let him top for a week.

Satisfied that his boyfriend was ready, Grimmjow positioned his cock and slowly, so slowly went inside. The clutching heat made him grunt in pleasure, then grin as he saw the look on Ichigo's face. He loved fucking the teen from the front. It let him enjoy the blush across those pale cheeks, the way he screwed his eyes shut at first. It was so easy to tell when his berry was ready. Sure enough, he gradually relaxed and those shy eyes opened, peering at him through thick lashes.

That was his cue to move, and he did. Gripping Ichigo's hips to hold him steady, he fucked the teen against the wall. Ichigo felt incredible inside, hot and tight, although not as tight as he'd been when they first got together. That didn't bother Grimmjow a bit. Ichigo wasn't just some random hole to put his dick in. Ichigo was a hell of a lot more than that.

"Grimm… ah…" The sounds he made were so cute, as Grimmjow managed to find that special spot inside him. "Ah!" Black leather rubbed against the wall, creaking slightly. There were soft clinks from the sword in its sheath, the hilt bouncing lightly against the dark bricks.

"God you feel good." Grimmjow grunted as he savored that feeling. He could see Ichigo's cock, rubbing between their bellies and beading with precum, but there wasn't much he could do about it. He needed both hands to hold his lover up. Ichigo solved that problem, keeping one arm around his shoulders and using the other to reach between them, stroking his own cock in time with Grimmjow's thrusts. "Shit!" The blue haired man panted out as he speeded up the pace, trying to go deeper. His groin was feeling tight and pleasantly painful, the sign that he was nearing his release. But he wanted Ichigo to come first.

He got his wish as the redhead tightened around him. Grimmjow savored his expression, the way his eyes rolled back in his head, the absolute bliss on his face. That look took him over the edge and he bit into leather to muffle his howl of pleasure.

They were both breathing heavily when Grimmjow slowly pulled away, his penis leaving his lover with an obscene squelch. Ichigo made a face as he glanced down and Grimmjow chuckled, pulling out a handful of rags from his pocket.

"You planned this?" Ichigo questioned as he took a rag and started cleaning up his legs. Grimmjow used another on his own chest, taking away the worst of the stains. Most of Ichigo's cum had gotten on himself but a bit of it had hit him.

"Not really. Rags are always useful." He said and Ichigo nodded ruefully. They'd both come home from missions like this covered in blood more times than they could count. "But I'm damned glad I brought them." If he hadn't he would have hesitated to take Ichigo like this. Sure, his lover was used to cock traffic, but no one wanted to be all wet and oozy on a mission into the forest. That was just asking for ass chafe. Then Ichigo suddenly froze.

"Shit, we are really late!" He hurriedly finished cleaning up as Grimmjow did his best to help, wiping off his coat. It was black leather and very similar to his own, but with a strange skull patch on the shoulder. "Come on!" He barked as soon as he yanked up his pants, then took off running. Grimmjow just grinned and followed. He wasn't worried.

And in one way he was right not to be. The whole logging detail was still there, waiting for them and twiddling their thumbs. However, the leader of the group was pretty pissed.

"Grimmjow! Ichigo!" That was Hannes. A tall man with blonde hair, he claimed to remember being a warrior before whatever had happened. But he hadn't known dick about sword work. He said he had memories of using some kind of distance weapon, but they had no idea what it had been. It had taken a while but Ikkaku and Yumichika had trained him and he had turned into a damned good swordsman. "Where the fuck have you been? Sneaking a quick fuck behind the Pub n' Grub?" Grimmjow froze at that incredibly accurate question. He could practically feel Ichigo going brick red and knew his face was revealing way, way too much. Hannes just stared at them both for a moment before shaking his head in disgusts. "Oookay. I really did not want to have that confirmed. Get into position, would you?"

"R-Right." Ichigo stuttered and Grimmjow decided that silence was the best option as he ran to his spot. There were a few hoots and jeers but he just adjusted his coat and gave them a magnificent sneer. He didn't care what anyone thought of him, and no one really cared anyway.

Despite the rocky start, they had a pretty good day in the woods. The woods were Grimmjow's natural environment. With his grappling hook he could dance through the branches like a breeze and he was an expert at killing the things that lived in the trees. Ichigo was nearly as good, although he preferred to remain on the ground. Most people did.

They both got to take their turn cutting down trees, too. In some ways it didn't make much sense putting them on that, since they were the two strongest fighters in the group. But no one wanted to get stuck on the trees all day and the only way the rest of the guys would get better was to see some action. So Grimmjow got to swing an axe and grinned as he felt it bite deep into the wood. Carefully judging his angle of attack, he glanced at the spot he was aiming to put the tree.

"Look out douchebags!" He called just before making the final cut. The tree groaned before falling exactly where he wanted it.

"It's supposed to be 'timber.'" One of the newbies corrected him and Grimmjow just shrugged as he began lopping away branches. He didn't care about forestry conventions.

There was a hissing sound followed by a plop and Grimmjow looked up, completely unalarmed, to see Ichigo flicking blood off his sword. A nasty little creature had been stalking through the underbrush, no doubt with intent to kill him and run off with the body. That was pretty common for the monsters in the woods. It hadn't counted on his boyfriend watching over him.

"What was that?" He asked before going back to his work. It was impossible to watch his back and take care of a tree at the same time so he didn't even try, putting his trust in the rest of the Division.

"Who knows? It's blue and furry." Ichigo answered and Grimmjow just shrugged before starting in on segmenting the tree. When he was done with that they would load up the remains onto a cart pulled by oxen. The big, placid oxen were used to this whole routine and didn't bat an eye when things tried to eat them. "You look so wonderful like that." Came a soft murmur and Grimmjow paused his work to grin at his friend.

"Oh yeah?" He deliberately flexed and Ichigo blushed, glancing away. He'd taken off his brown leather coat and white undershirt, and his body was sheened with sweat from the work. "Well, you can see more later. Those woods won't watch themselves."

"Right." Ichigo went back to his vigilance and Grimmjow went back to the work. When the tree was finished he pulled his clothing back on and switched places with his friend. Ichigo wasn't as strong as him and would take a bit longer to take care of a tree, but only a bit. Most of their logging team used two man saws rather than the simple axe he did. They just didn't have the strength for it.

When they went back to town they didn't just bring the trees. They also brought the corpses of the new creature Ichigo had killed, and several others that they knew were edible. They also had some venom glands taken from a trapdoor spider. The critter had made the mistake of thinking they were edible, but that was their fortune since the venom could be used as an excellent tenderizer when it was diluted. The one fancy restaurant in town would pay a premium for it.

Of course, all of that would go to the Division. It was expensive to run, and they tried to keep the burden on the townsfolk to a minimum. Grimmjow sighed to himself as they finally exited the woods and glanced up at the sun. It was close to evening and he was hungry. They'd brought some rations, but all the work ran through them in a hurry.

"Want to head over to the Pub n' Grub tonight?" Ichigo asked and Grimmjow didn't have to think twice.

"Shit yeah. They're serving that really great egg casserole they make." He said, licking his lips as he thought about it. Chickens were everywhere in the town and even outside the town, eating bugs among the farmer's crops. They didn't get to eat the chickens too often, and mostly when they were old, stringy birds. But there were plenty of eggs. Then he noticed Ichigo's grin. "You knew about that, didn't you?"

"Yeah, and I know it's your favorite." He said and Grimmjow scowled, not liking that he was so predictable. But Ichigo did know him really well. "And the cantina is serving stewed kanichi and salted fish."

"Blech." Kanichi was a root that grew everywhere and tasted like a combination of sawdust and motor oil. At least, that's what Ichigo said. Grimmjow had no idea what motor oil was so he had to take his boyfriend's word for it. "Yeah, the pub for sure." It would be a bit expensive, but it wasn't like they were saving for the future. Things were too fucked for that.

There was no point in saving for the future when there might be no future to save for.

* * *

"I said no!" A heavy hand slammed onto a wooden counter. The gentleman behind it looked completely unimpressed. "Three bits." Grimmjow snarled, anger pulsing through him.

He'd learned a year ago not to get his temper really involved in bargaining. Bargaining was all about bluffing and making faces, and real temper didn't have a part in it. But what he was going through right now wasn't dickering, it was robbery and he was the victim. Not a position the blue haired man liked to occupy at the best of times.

"Five bits or you can take your mangy hide and let it rot." The man said contemptuously and Grimmjow set his jaw, glaring down at the hide on the counter. It was fine fur, but he would still be lucky to get seven bits for it, maybe only six. When the tanning ate up five that was brutal. He was tempted to just take it and throw it in the bay but then rationality caught up with him.

"Fine. But don't expect to see me risking my life to bring you hides anymore." He growled but the fellow seemed indifferent. He didn't give much of a damn about the random crap the Division dragged in for him. The real work the tannery did came from the deer and other pests the farmers caught when they tried to eat the crops. Scowling, Grimmjow reluctantly pulled out his money, looking at the bits for a moment before passing them over.

Money had been a bit tricky in Santa Maria. They'd started with carved seashells, but those had been ridiculously easy to fake. They'd tried several other things before a real smith had trickled in and started making the bits. They were die cast and made of brass. There was a mine, deep in the woods, but it only operated when the town needed metal. The Division had to run it, too. None of the townsfolk were willing to risk their lives on it.

Leaving the tannery, Grimmjow reflected grimly on the state of the town. It really pissed him off sometimes. Ichigo made excuses for them, but to his mind the town reeked of cowardice. The Division protected the foresters and the miners but it was still ridiculously hard to get people out from behind the walls. Even when it was the off season for the farmers and there wasn't enough work to go around, they still had trouble getting people. What the hell was wrong with them?

And then there were the monopolies. Grimmjow spat on the ground as he thought about it. The smithy, the tannery, even the cooper… they all had their trade secrets and were reluctant to share. The smith, at least, understood the importance of passing on his knowledge. He had two apprentices. The cooper didn't have any and Grimmjow wasn't sure what they'd do for beer barrels if he got hit with a rock or something.

"Beer." Grimmjow muttered, wishing he could afford some of the better stuff. The mushroom crap was just to keep the water safe, they also made some rye based beer. "Ugh." He wouldn't be affording that in a hurry. If only there was a second tanner in town…

Feeling pissed off at the world he banged open the door. His mood immediately got worse as he saw the door to the inner room was closed.

"Kurosaki you fucking douchebag!" Grimmjow snarled as he yanked it open. If there was one habit of Ichigo's that annoyed the hell out of him, it was his compulsion to close doors. It was like the teen saw an open door and something in his soul just screamed, 'shut it!' And that was a huge problem because this room had Pantera's litter box. Grimmjow had tried to move it to the bathroom one time but Ichigo had firmly rejected the idea as unhygienic. Feeling an immense sense of dread, Grimmjow began searching the little apartment for signs that Pantera had done something unfortunate.

"FUCK!" His howl could have been heard a mile away. "PANTERA!" He grabbed his sopping wet pillow and cursed. "You motherFUCKER! WHY? Why the hell can't you go outside?!" His cat was weird. The front door had a cat door that Pantera used to come and go, but he insisted on using his litter box. He wouldn't go outside like any normal feline. So when Kurosaki closed that door he found somewhere else to go… in this case, the bed. "Fuck fuck fuck fuck…" Growling in anger, Grimmjow began stripping down the bed. Cursing viciously, he used a spray that he'd picked up from the apothecary, liberally applying it to the bed. Once it had had a chance to dry, he'd wipe it off. It would get the cat pee smell out. "I am going to kick his ass. And he can fucking well pay for this." Grimmjow muttered as he carried the blankets out the door. It was time for a trip to the laundry.

The laundry wasn't cheap either, but it was fair considering how much wood it took to heat the water. Two bits poorer, Grimmjow went to look for Ichigo with rage in his heart. He was going to seriously cuss his boyfriend out for this one. How many times had they had this discussion?!

He hit paydirt at the Pub 'n Grub. He could hear his boyfriend's voice and slammed open the door with a roar.

"KUROSA – ki…" His roar died as the tip of a sword nestled firmly against the hollow of his throat. If Grimmjow had been moving any faster he probably would have died. As it was, he looked around, trying to get a bearing on the situation. The guy holding him at swordpoint was a complete stranger to him. He had blonde hair and was wearing a weird hat. There was another stranger in the pub, one with long black hair and a very pretty face. He was standing beside Ichigo, who was looking completely appalled by this turn of events.

"Oh my god, stop! What are you doing?!" He demanded of the guy with the hat, who blinked but didn't look away from his target. "That's my boyfriend! Let him go!"

"Your 'boyfriend' seemed ready to commit homicide." The stranger pointed out cheerfully, but drew away his sword. Grimmjow let out a breath he hadn't been aware he was holding and reached up to wipe away a drop of blood. "I'm sorry for the misunderstanding, arrancar."

"Arrancar?" Grimmjow said, trying to understand. It felt like he should know that word, but he didn't. Why did it seem so familiar? "What the fuck is going on here?" His fists clenched as he looked at the strangers with hostility. If they were planning some kind of shit he was going to fuck them up. They wouldn't get the drop on him that easily again, he hadn't been expecting trouble this early. Trouble often happened at the pub, but usually when everyone was drunk.

"They just wanted to talk to me… Grimm, what were you yelling about?" Ichigo asked and that diverted his hostility nicely as he remembered the reason he'd come here in the first place.

"Oh yeah. Kurosaki! If you close Pantera's door ONE MORE TIME, I am going to rip your balls off!" Ichigo winced as the stranger with the hat lifted an eyebrow, smiling in amusement. The other one, Grimmjow couldn't tell what he was thinking. He had a great poker face. "The little bastard peed all over the bed! You owe me two bits for the laundry and another bit for my mental distress."

"Mental distress? Bullshit!" Ichigo yelped and Grimmjow grinned wickedly. "You had your hands stuck in a bone fiend's guts just last week! Don't give me that!"

"Call it punitive damages then, whatever. You need to stop this shit. Now who are your new friends?" Grimmjow glanced around and saw they'd been sitting at a table near the door until his noisy entrance. He plopped down before putting his feet on the table. Pretty and silent gave him a look that he was pretty sure was disgusted, but Grimmjow really couldn't give two shits.

"They're not my friends." Ichigo grumped, to Grimmjow's pleasure. Funny hat gave him a hurt look while pretty and silent just transferred his look to Ichigo. "This is Urahara Kisuke and this is Kuchiki Byakuya." He introduced them and Grimmjow gave them each nods. A tired looking barmaid came over to ask if he wanted anything.

"Can you get me something? I'm out of bits." He asked Kurosaki who checked his pockets and nodded. "Okay, I'll take whatever you've got." The Pub n' Grub did not offer a selection. The woman nodded and walked off as Ichigo sighed.

"It's eel pie." He said with a grimace. That made Grimmjow pause for a moment, but only a moment.

"I've eaten worse. So what's up?" He wasn't going to let himself get sidetracked. The guy with the hat gave him a smile but Grimmjow noticed there was a rather brittle edge to it.

"Do you remember anything from before two years ago, Grimmjow-kun?" He asked and Grimmjow scowled.

"Not this shit again! Who gives a flying fuck what happened two years ago?" He snapped, irritated. He just couldn't help it. He _hated_ this fixation on the past that so many people seemed to be going through, his lover included. "It's over! It's done! We need to go on with our goddamn lives!"

"That was not an answer to the question." The pretty boy did actually have a voice, it seemed. Grimmjow snarled at him before taking his feet off the table and sitting up properly.

"Ya want to know what I remember? Fine. I remember hot showers, I remember a sword in my hand and the wind in my hair. I remember Kurosaki a little, I think we were fighting but we might've been fucking." Ichigo turned a little red at that, avoiding the gaze of his two new friends. Pretty boy looked less than amused, but funny hat seemed to find the idea hilarious. "So what do you guys remember then?"

"Everything." Funny hat… no, Kisuke… sounded dead serious for once. Blue eyes met grey and Grimmjow shivered a little at the intensity in them. "Byakuya and I were in the Dangai when everything came crashing down, and we were… somewhat lucky. The Dangai was unaffected by the collapse of the three worlds, but it was cut off from the remnants. It took us these last two years to find a way out."

"Collapse of the three worlds?" Ichigo leaned forward and Grimmjow sighed to himself. This shit again. "So Bunny was right? Someone tried to become the Soul King and failed?"

"Yes. It started with Aizen…" Funny hat started telling Ichigo all about the past. Grimmjow was glad when the eel pie arrived. It actually wasn't bad… no, it was really good. Sometimes the eel pie was a bit off but today it was nice, full of root vegetables and fresh herbs with a flaky pie crust. He dug in with good appetite but then glanced up as he heard that familiar word again. "…Arrancar like Grimmjow-kun." Kisuke gave him a nod and Grimmjow blinked.

"So we were enemies?" Ichigo didn't sound very surprised and Kisuke and Byakuya both nodded. "I had a feeling I'd seen that grin of his at close range." Grimmjow snorted, feeling a bit disturbed. Sure, he'd had a feeling that hadn't been buddies before, but it still didn't feel good to have it confirmed.

"Yes. You defeated him and left him alive, but badly injured, in Los Noches." Grimmjow tuned them out again and went back to his food. The thought that Kurosaki had beaten the shit out of him and left him for dead once didn't really bother him. It was all in the past he didn't remember and refused to give a shit about. He did keep half an ear on the conversation, though, and noticed when Kisuke was winding it up. "…We didn't see it ourselves, of course, but we believe the power of the Soul King's throne consumed Aizen. He was not the rightful heir to the throne and it would not accept him. But because of his power the throne itself was almost destroyed and the three worlds were shattered. Now, the throne stands empty and the worlds cannot heal until it is filled."

"That sucks balls." Grimmjow said indifferently. "And what's this got to do with us?" It was all bullshit as far as he could see. He wasn't even sure if they should believe these two, although the story did line up with Bunny's ideas.

"It has nothing to do with you, arrancar." Byakuya said and Grimmjow frowned, looking at the guy. He really had an air of hostility about him. "However – " That was when the door opened and someone familiar walked in.

"Grimmjow-kun! You still need to take your… medicine…?" Bunny stopped short, her eyes going wide with disbelief as she saw the two men at the table. Grimmjow looked over and was surprised to see tears building in those big violet eyes. "…Nii-san!" Byakuya was out of his seat and holding her as she sobbed into his chest. "You're alive!"

"Rukia." He said softly, gently stroking her black hair. Grimmjow felt a bit uncomfortable, watching this family reunion. "You're alive." He sounded happy, although it was hard to tell. Grimmjow glanced at the other two and saw Ichigo looking like he'd had a revelation.

"Rukia. Her name is Rukia…" His best friend murmured, watching the brother and sister reunited. Grimmjow shrugged.

"Beats Bunny I guess. Hey Rukia! Pass over that shit will you – OW!" She pegged him on the head with the herb packet and Grimmjow grimaced, rubbing his forehead. "The hell was that for?"

"Try to get some sensitivity through that thick skull of yours." She said tartly and he scowled before grabbing the bundle of herbs and going to the bar. He'd need some hot water to make the herbal tea she still wanted him to take. "Nii-san, I… I hate to ask this but… what is your name?" Rukia asked, looking down. She sounded ashamed. "I can't remember." She confessed and Byakuya's arms tightened around her.

"I am Kuchiki Byakuya of the Kuchiki clan. You are Kuchiki Rukia, my adopted sister." He said calmly before touching her chin, lifting it so their eyes met. "Do not be ashamed. You cannot avoid the effects of the shattering." He said and she nodded, smiling shyly.

"Thank you nii-san." Byakuya glanced at Kisuke and he nodded. He took his sister to a private corner of the bar and they were soon immersed in a deep discussion. Grimmjow came back with his mug of tea and finally got to hear the punchline of the story.

"Only someone of the old royal line can take the throne. Byakuya might be able to do so – his family is descended from royalty, very far back – but Ichigo, you are a far more direct descendant." Kisuke said seriously and Ichigo gave him a look that was both horrified and disbelieving. "Your father was a member of the Shiba clan but he was also the illegitimate offspring of the Soul King. It was a closely guarded secret but he shared it with me. The throne might kill Byakuya but you can take it easily. Ichigo, we've been looking for you since we escaped the Dangai. You need to become the new Soul King." Ichigo's eyes met Grimmjow's and they both shared a moment of perfect understanding.

What the hell were they supposed to do about this?


	4. My Common Sense is Tingling

Grimmjow was the first to put it into words, of course.

"Okay. You guys spin a good story, but I have some fucking problems. First, why should we risk our lives on this shit? Why shouldn't we just tell you to fuck yourselves?" He said plainly and Ichigo winced. "Berry here hates leading a squad. Why the hell would he want to be Soul King?" Grimmjow had no idea what it would entail but he was pretty sure Ichigo wouldn't enjoy it. He was currently avoiding leadership like a splash of dirty water. Grimmjow liked being in charge of a squad but he'd come to realize he wasn't very good at it. He liked to get in the thick of the battle and he tended to forget all about his teammates when that happened. Which was fine for a spear carrier, but not so great for the squad leader.

"You are a bit selfish, aren't you Grimmjow-kun?" Urahara said and Ichigo and Grimmjow both scowled. "You do realize that everything happening now is because the three worlds shattered and partially merged? It will only get worse."

"Why don't you explain that?" Ichigo suggested quietly and Kisuke thought for a moment before nodding.

"I suppose this must seem normal to you. Ichigo, before the shattering there were three worlds. The Living Realm, where humans lived and died as well as the two spiritual realms, Soul Society and Hueco Mundo. Soul Society was for those humans who find it immediately or who were sent there by a shinigami. Hueco Mundo was for corrupted souls such as hollows and arrancar." Grimmjow and Ichigo both exchanged a glance at that as Kisuke smiled cheerfully behind his fan. "There was also Hell, which was for souls that were evil rather than simply corrupt."

"What's the difference?" Grimmjow asked, intrigued. Urahara shrugged.

"A corrupted soul is a normal soul that has lost its' chain of fate and gone mad. But that doesn't matter now. It never happens anymore. You see, when the three worlds were shattered they were forced to merge." Urahara sounded very serious now. "This world you inhabit is the remains of that merging. That's why you, Grimmjow-kun, are no longer an arrancar. The Living World ensured that everyone in this combination would have bodies of flesh." Grimmjow frowned as Ichigo slowly sipped his beer. "However, the experience was extremely traumatic. Those who were strong enough or lucky enough to make the jump became something like humans, but kept some of the powers of their original heritage. Those who were humans to begin with can develop such powers, given the extremely high reishi environment." They both wondered what 'reishi' was but didn't interrupt. "However, many, many souls did not survive the merger intact. They became the monsters that plague this world. And unfortunately, this is an ongoing process."

"Huh?" Grimmjow said, confused. "What do you mean?" Kisuke lowered his fan and gave him a smile, but it was strained around the edges.

"Whenever a man or woman dies, they cannot go to Soul Society or Hueco Mundo. There is nowhere to go. If they are lucky they may be reborn quickly as a new infant. However, if there is no body available the soul is born to one of the monsters, who litter quite rapidly." His smile faded to nothing. "They outnumber you, I assure you."

"We might have noticed." Grimmjow grunted. He had to admit that Urahara had a point. The world sucked and apparently what had happened two years ago was the reason. "Anything else?" He asked and Kisuke looked pensive for a moment.

"Hell was shattered as well. We believe some of the hell bound souls became human again, but others became monsters. And I'm very much afraid that when deaths happen but there are no human or monster infants available, the souls may become lost." He sighed, looking down into his tea. "This world contains only a fraction of the population of the original worlds." Grimmjow scratched his head and glanced at Ichigo. His best friend and lover was looking sick.

"We still don't know if we should believe these guys." He pointed out, mostly to keep Ichigo's spirits up. He clearly didn't want to do this. Although the way their story meshed with Bunny's was fairly compelling.

"Well, it will be quite dangerous! Terrible monsters and extreme difficulties. I can understand being afraid – " Kisuke said and that immediately ignited Grimmjow's ire.

"Afraid?! Ya think I'm scared?!" He stood up, shoving his hands down on the table as he glared at the man. "I'll beat those monsters to death with my fucking cock!" Urahara stared, his grey eyes wide and Ichigo sighed, setting his chin in his hand.

"It's not that big, Grimm. And he's just trying to wind you up." Ichigo could tell what was going on here. Kisuke was trying, not so subtly, to get Grimmjow to agree to his plan. Grimmjow snorted, straightening and rolling his shoulders.

"I know, I'm not stupid. And what do you mean, it's not that big? I have trouble getting my pants on in the morning!" He said with perverse pride and Ichigo snorted before sipping his beer.

"That's because the laundry shrunk them, remember? You're so embarrassing sometimes." He muttered under his breath as Grimmjow slid back into his seat. Unfortunately, he wasn't quiet enough.

"I'm embarrassing? D'ya want me to remind you about what happened in the 'love booth' back there that time?" Grimmjow leered as Ichigo blushed. Kisuke just watched them, fascinated. "See, it started when he got drunk and a fight broke out and he yanked me under the table. Then he started dry humping me which was a new experience – "

"If you don't shut up right now, you're going to experience a week of celibacy." Ichigo threatened, his brown eyes narrowing even as his blush heated up. Grimmjow decided it was time to stop, but he couldn't help but grin. "And get that stupid grin off your face!"

"I can't help it. You make me happy inside." He said and Ichigo's blush darkened for a moment before he gave Grimmjow a look that was smoldering with both anger and lust. No, a week of celibacy would not be happening. Then Kisuke laughed, drawing their attention.

"The two of you certainly have changed! Well, there's no need to make a decision immediately. We were going to stay for at least a week to gather supplies and have a bit of a break. Travelling through the countryside has been quite wearing." They both nodded. They'd been there and done that, mostly when the mines needed to be worked for a while. Kisuke smiled sunnily at them. "I don't suppose you know where we could stay?"

"Hm." Grimmjow muttered to himself. That was actually a problem. "If you guys don't mind the complete lack of privacy, you could stay right here." The pub rented the floor out after closing to those who were truly down and out or just too drunk to walk home.

"I don't think you guys can stay with Bunny. She's married." Ichigo said and Grimmjow grinned as Urahara's eyes bugged out. Then he glanced over his shoulder and saw that Byakuya had heard that and was looking at Rukia's hands. Sure enough, there was a wedding ring. She wore it all the time, not because she felt the need to but because it was actually a good one. She didn't want something that valuable left where it could be stolen. "And they live in a really small apartment. You could go ask Yumichika and Ikkaku if there's anyone who can put you up." As the leaders of the Division they would know who had room and who didn't. "We really don't have room either, unless you don't mind sleeping in the inner room."

"Where we keep the kitty litter." Grimmjow added. "And that cat can do some wicked farts." He'd been petting Pantera once and gotten one right in the face. It had been an experience to remember. Kisuke laughed.

"I think we'll check with Yumichika and Ikkaku. So pleasant to know they survived! It seems that many shinigami managed to make the conversion. But we'll probably need to meet Rukia's husband first." He sounded like he was looking forward to it and Grimmjow hoped they didn't give him too hard a time. Tesra was a right enough guy, in his book. He worked at the cantina but he could fight well and wasn't afraid to do it, unlike most of the losers in this pesthole.

"Well, if you can't find us at the bar, we're broke and at the cantina. Speaking of which, are you hungry?" He asked Ichigo who nodded. He knew his lover wasn't about to spend bits on eel pie. He hated the texture even when it was good. "Then let's go." They parted ways then and went to the cantina.

The cantina was simply a mess hall. Huge tables of ancient, scarred wood were arrayed in rows. The building itself was simple wood, with windows of cheap, blobby glass to let some light in. Grimmjow glanced down as he took a seat and grinned. Someone had taken the time to carve a heart and a couple names into his section of the table. He couldn't recognize the girls' name but he made a note to tease the guy about his crush.

The food at the cantina ranged from okay to dire. Today was closer to okay, mostly due to the mushrooms. Someone, probably Tesra, had salted them and toasted them perfectly. They came served on little skewers with onions and that helped with the smoked fish. It was a big slab, served with a bit of rye bread and just barely edible.

"Grimm? What do you think?" Ichigo asked and blue eyes lifted from the table to meet troubled brown. "I'm not sure what we should do." He admitted and Grimmjow grunted, putting his chin in his hand as he thought about it.

"Their story matches Bunny's… I mean, Rukia's." It would take some time for him to get used to calling her that. "I dunno. I'll be honest, though. I'd love to scrape this place of my shoes." The shit with the tanner was still rankling him. "I love the Division but the civilians just piss me off. And I'd like to go see more of the world." This was the only city he'd ever seen, but he knew there had to be more. Ichigo smiled slightly. "So if you decide to do it, I'm behind you all the way. And if you decide not to, I'm still behind you." As far as Grimmjow was concerned, this was Ichigo's decision. His lover sighed.

"So it's all up to me? You put a lot of pressure on me sometimes, Grimm." Ichigo said sadly and Grimmjow blinked. He hadn't been thinking of it that way at all.

"What, you want me to make a decision for you? Shit yes! Let's do it!" Ichigo stared at him, surprised by the sudden enthusiasm. He stood up from his chair, flexing his arms dramatically. "Danger and destruction, I just can't wait!"

"Grimm!" Ichigo shook his head with a laugh. "You're an idiot. Right, I'll make the decision." Grimmjow grinned, pleased to see that Ichigo's depression was a thing of the past.

"Damn right!" He flopped back down in his chair and took a big drink of the beer. "Uck… and maybe the next place we'll visit will have water we can drink." This shit was for the birds. Ichigo looked pensive for a moment before nodding.

"Okay. I think we're going to do it." He said resolutely and Grimmjow smiled. He'd been sure for a while that that would be Ichigo's decision. He might not want to be Soul King, but he had a very strong sense of duty.

He wouldn't let the world crumble to pieces around him.

* * *

Grimmjow took a deep breath of the clean, unsullied air and savored the feeling of being in the forest.

Everyone else hated the forest, which made sense given that it was always trying to kill you. But he loved it. Mostly, he loved the freedom. It felt so good to really stretch his legs, to leap from branch to branch with his power and his grappling hook. The forest felt like home to him, like the place he belonged.

Of course, the forest creatures didn't agree. A huge snake tried to drop on him, but he was too fast. Lacerate easily took care of the problem and there was a loud yelp from below.

"MY HAT!" Grimmjow grinned wickedly at Kisuke's lament.

"Suck it up, you pussy!" He called back and enjoyed the curses that followed. "Shut it! We need to hurry if we're going to make the river before dark." That was their goal, although before Kisuke and Byakuya had arrived Grimmjow hadn't even known about the river.

They had already been on the road several days, and the river was far past where anyone from the town would bother to go. This was the deep forest, cold and fearsome. Grimmjow paused as he suddenly thought of sand. Cold sand, with an endless moon above him in an empty sky. Shaking away that strange and unsettling vision, he leapt back down to his friends. They couldn't keep up with him when he tree danced that way.

They reached the river by nightfall and set up camp by the banks. The first thing they did was build a great fire. It would make their location obvious, but many of the monsters of the forest were terrified of fire. Sure enough, nothing came at them during the night, although they kept a watch to be sure. The next morning Grimmjow and Ichigo got their first good look at the river.

"Big." Grimmjow said appreciatively. "Are we going to swim it?" It looked doable. But Kisuke shook his head.

"We crossed it up here last time, but we didn't there were no bridges. It was far more shallow down further." He said cheerfully and Grimmjow nodded. "We'll cross it down there, just a simple wade across the shallows."

"Alright." So that began the next leg of their trek. Nothing much happened for the next two days, except plenty of bone fiends and other monsters dying. Also some enforced abstinence, since fucking in the trees almost got them eaten by a spider and Byakuya had made it clear that he wouldn't tolerate fooling around in camp. Kisuke had made it clear he not only would tolerate it, he would be wanking off in the corner. Grimmjow didn't mind but Ichigo most definitely did, so he suffered manfully, taking out his frustrations on the beasts.

"As soon as we reach a town we are getting a fucking tent." He growled to Ichigo, who nodded tiredly. They hadn't bothered because it hadn't seemed necessary, with the trees to keep off the wet, but it seemed very necessary now.

"I think the river is narrow enough." Kisuke said and they both glanced at the river. It had gradually gone from a big, slow thing to this fast moving little creek. Grimmjow scratched his cheek, looking at the water dubiously. "Shall we cross it?"

"Sure, why not – huh?" Ichigo stopped as Grimmjow gripped his arm.

"My common sense is tingling." He said and Ichigo's eyes widened before he gestured at Kisuke and Byakuya. The raven haired man was about to enter the water.

"Stop!" He said sharply as Grimmjow just ignored them all, gazing into the water thoughtfully. "Something's wrong."

"Common sense is tingling?" Kisuke repeated in a wondering tone. Grimmjow just wished they would all shut up. _Something_ was up but he just couldn't put his finger on it. Byakuya had stopped but was looking at them with a less than amused expression.

"The last time he said that and we ignored it, we lost two oxen and three men when a bridge collapsed." Ichigo explained and the two exchanged a dubious look. "What is it, Grimm?" He asked and Grimmjow growled.

"Maybe if you'd all shut up and let me think, I could tell you." He retorted and finally silence descended. They were all watching him but that was easy to ignore and Grimmjow finally caught the discrepancy that had attracted his attention. "This river. I never saw it branch off, did you?"

"It must have branched off." Byakuya sounded impatient. "Where else could the water have gone?" Grimmjow grinned toothily before glancing at Ichigo.

"Hey, get me that roll of twine out of your bag, would you?" Twine had many uses, including stringing up fish and making impromptu shelters. They always carried plenty of it. Ichigo got out the roll and Grimmjow looked it over. "Too light… got any good rocks that we can put a hole into, or slip a bit of twine around or something?"

"Rocks? Grimmjow-kun, is this really necessary?" Kisuke asked, not really taking the whole thing seriously. Grimmjow paused as he thought of an alternate plan.

"Well, you could go find a monster for me and I could toss it right in!" He said, grinning. "That would work great."

"Rocks are fine." Ichigo said hastily as Kisuke looked slightly shocked and Byakuya looked very unamused. It took a while, and the two strangers were clearly humoring them, but Ichigo finally found him some acceptable rocks. They managed to fix one to the twine and Grimmjow unraveled it a bit from the roll before tossing the end into the stream.

The reaction was dramatic. Instead of just sitting there limply, as one would expect, the twine snapped forwards. Grimmjow had been holding the roll loosely, expecting something like this, and it twirled wildly between his hands, the twine being sucked off the roll by a vicious current. The twine reached the end and the cardboard roll jerked out of his hands, flying into the river. Grimmjow glanced at Kisuke and Byakuya. They were both watching the performance, Kisuke with fascination and Byakuya with a faintly shocked expression. The shock quickly turned into a cold, grim look as he realized exactly what this meant.

"I think the water is right here. It hasn't gone anywhere." Grimmjow said as Kisuke knelt, peering down at the hungry little creek. "It's going down. So, want to take a walk and see how far it goes?" He asked Byakuya cheerfully, who gave him a scorching look.

"Absolutely fascinating! How could such a thing occur? I must study… um. Ahem. So what should we do now?" He asked and Grimmjow and Ichigo exchanged a look.

"Go back upstream until it's safe again, then cross?" Ichigo finally suggested and Grimmjow groaned. That would mean losing several days off their trip. He looked hard at the trees across the river before coming up with a different plan.

"I think I can set up my grappling hook here, cross with my flying ability then set up the other end on the other side." That was a bit risky though. His flying really wasn't the best anymore and if he lost his grip halfway across, well… Ichigo gripped his arm tightly and he gave the redhead a reassuring smile. "I can do it. It really ain't far." The stream was quite narrow. It might even be possible for them to jump it, if they felt stupidly daring.

"Alright. But don't fall in our I'll kill you." Ichigo threatened and Grimmjow decided not to point out that that would be redundant. He fixed the end of the grappling hook on a tree, putting it in nice and firmly but not so firmly that he wouldn't be able to get it free later. Then he flew across the river. His flying really was shit. He bobbled through the air, fighting to stay up. When he reached the other side he had to pause, gasping for air as he bent over.

"So fucking exhausting." He wheezed. But he'd made it, that was all that mattered. He fixed the other side of his grappling hook in place, making sure the wire was nice and stable. "Can you guys use that to cross?" He called to them. It wouldn't be pleasant, using a wire like that. Ichigo called back.

"No problem!" And it wasn't. Ichigo used the wire easily, pulling himself along hand over hand. Kisuke actually used it like a tightrope, walking on the top of it. Grimmjow was genuinely impressed. Byakuya followed Ichigo's example. When they were all safely across he gave the hook a hard yank, tearing it out of the tree across the river. The hook slid home with a steely hiss and he noticed Kisuke giving him an odd look. "What?"

"May I see that, Grimmjow-kun?" He asked and Grimmjow shrugged, handling over the grappling hook. Kisuke's expression turned inward for a moment as he turned the metal over in his hands. "This feels like the celestial realm." He murmured before sighing and passing it back. "It belonged to one of the Zero squad, or possibly one of the Royal family. Whoever owned it is certainly dead now." He said and Grimmjow shrugged again.

"I don't care if they appear in front of me sprouting wings and heralded with trumpets. They're not getting it back." He loved his grappling hook just a little less than he loved Ichigo. Kisuke laughed as Ichigo shook his head with a smile. "We ready to go."

"Yes, I think we are. And we'll always listen to your common sense, Grimmjow-kun!" Kisuke assured him and Grimmjow just grunted. But inwardly he was pleased.

His common sense was infallible.

* * *

Author's Note: In case anyone is wondering, that river is real. It is called the Bolton Strid, it exists in England and it will KILL YOU DEAD. Don't step in it.


	5. A Complication

"I can't believe it." Grimmjow said in awe as he looked over the town they had discovered.

"I can't believe it, either." Ichigo was awed too, but it was the wrong kind of awe. They were both amazed that this town could even exist.

It was terrible. The walls were mostly wood, which was just about a guaranteed failure waiting to happen. There was a reason why the walls around Santa Maria were good, hard stone. Wood could repel the bone fiends and many monsters, but not the giants. They would simply take a step back, build up a good head of steam and smash their way through. From the battered, patched look of these walls, that had happened before.

Getting past the walls, the town itself was beyond disreputable. Grimmjow wrinkled his nose at the stench of effluvia. Santa Maria's laws included strict sanctions against anyone who simply dumped their waste in public. This place clearly didn't bother with such niceties.

"Don't drink the water." He muttered to Ichigo who nodded morosely. "Shit." If the water in Santa Maria was bad, the water here would be bad with bows on. "Now I know why those two seemed impressed with the Eleventh." He hadn't thought much of it at the time, but Urahara had praised the way Santa Maria was organized and Byakuya had given it some quiet approval. More than he'd given to Rukia and Tesra.

Grimmjow grimaced a little as he thought about that. He couldn't remember a damned thing he'd done as an arrancar and Rukia couldn't either, so none of it mattered to them. But Byakuya could remember and he seemed to be holding a grudge. Well, from what Grimmjow had gathered his entire family was gone. Dead or just scattered? Who knew? But Byakuya was assuming most of them were dead, which was likely a good guess.

"Still shouldn't hold it against Tesra." Grimmjow muttered. As far as he was concerned, the fact that Tesra had been an arrancar was proof positive that they were merely corrupted, not evil. He was honestly a very sweet guy and extremely supportive to Rukia. Grimmjow wondered if Byakuya would ever accept that.

But that was for the future. For the present, he needed to pay attention. A kid ran away from them and a quick flick of his grappling hook snagged his ankles, sending him crashing to the ground. Everyone gave him a startled look and Grimmjow sighed.

"Hey, Urahara. Maybe you should go get your purse off him." He suggested and the shopkeeper looked shocked before patting himself down and verifying that yes, his purse full of pearls was gone. He went over to the young thief who quickly handed the money over, clearly terrified. "And can you unhook that from his ankles?" If he did it himself the kid would probably lose a chunk of flesh. A lot of people in Santa Maria had complained about his grappling hook giving their roofs leaks, but Grimmjow didn't care. Urahara frowned, carefully unhooking the device and letting it slide back home with a steely snap. "Thanks."

"No, thank you." Urahara waved the boy away and he ran off, sniffling. Grimmjow grimaced as he saw the kid looked half-starved. Fantastic. "I can't imagine how you knew."

"He's just that amazing." Ichigo leaned against him with a smile, shoving his shoulder against his. Grimmjow grinned and shoved back. That was the manly way they demonstrated their affection. "Where are we going to stay?" He asked and they all looked around. "Hmm… hey, kid!" Grimmjow lifted his eyebrows as Ichigo picked out a child playing in the street, seemingly at random. "Want to earn some food?" That would probably be more useful for a street urchin than a pearl. The kid came towards them cautiously. "We need an inn that doesn't have too many bugs." He explained and the child, a towheaded little girl, nodded.

"I can do that mister. Follow me." She skipped off and they followed. It seemed Ichigo's instincts were on the money, because she led them to a place that didn't seem too disgusting. As payment, Ichigo gave her a bag of trail bread and monster jerky. She accepted it happily before running away and Grimmjow suspected she was bringing it hope to her family. Food had to be a hot commodity, here.

Getting rooms required a bit of dickering. They'd been pretty smart before leaving Santa Maria, though. Figuring that any other town they reached wouldn't be willing to recognize bits as money, they'd exchanged everything for beautiful strands of pearls. The oyster farmers had figured out how to make cultured pearls a long time ago, so they were dirt cheap. They weren't cheap here though, and the innkeeper finally gave them rooms for a week in exchange for three pearls.

"We're gonna be here that long?" Grimmjow asked and Urahara nodded.

"I need to get some readings and this is a good place to do it." The ex-shopkeeper said and Grimmjow scratched his head. This part of their mission was a complete mystery to him, but apparently finding the 'door' to the realm of the Soul King wasn't easy.

"We can catch up on lost time." Ichigo said in a smoky voice and Grimmjow grunted as he felt a kick to his libido. Burning blue eyes met smoldering brown, and he pinned his lover to the wall, giving him a deep and intimate kiss. The feel of Ichigo's lips on his was just so damned good…

"Ahem." They both glanced over, irritated, to see Byakuya scowling at them. Grumbling slightly, Grimmjow pried himself away and made room for him to go by. Ichigo straightened his clothes, blushing. "We did get three rooms?" He asked and Urahara nodded with a sunny smile.

"Of course! Although I don't know why you won't share with me. It's just a medical condition." He protested and Grimmjow sniggered.

"Wanking off to us isn't a medical condition, pervert." He said as Urahara tried to look wounded. It was a miserable failure. "By the way, if I catch you listening at the door I'm going to rip your balls off." Byakuya marched away, his back very straight, and Grimmjow could tell he was offended by all of them. Well, he couldn't give less of a crap. "C'mon Ichi." He was serious about making up for lost time. He was going to pin his boyfriend to the bed and ravish him so hard…

As it turned out, Ichigo had other ideas. Grimmjow wasn't expecting to be attacked so intensely, or to end up flat on his back on the bed. It just… happened. And to tell the truth, he didn't mind. Ichigo rarely got in a mood like this but when he did…

"Gonna fuck me Ichi?" Grimmjow said, rolling is hips provocatively against his hot lover. Ichigo groaned before attacking his throat, hands working on his belt. The heavy leather fell away and Grimmjow shrugged off his jacket, leaving it on the bed. He didn't bother to remove his undershirt. This was going way too fast for that.

"I'm going to make you scream my name." Ichigo promised, his eyes narrowing in a way that was both dominant and predatory. Grimmjow swallowed back a bit of drool at the thought. Damn, his berry was sexy when he got all riled up.

For a while, they just ground against each other, tearing at each other in a frenzy. But then his legs were hooked over Ichigo's shoulders and Grimmjow panted as a finger invaded his tight passage.

"Fuck, you are so tight Grimm." Ichi murmured as he forced that finger through, making the man beneath him groan in a combination of pain and pleasure. "Loosen up." He commanded and Grimmjow growled.

"You forgot the lube, dickhead!" He snarled and Ichigo grinned, giving him a deep and passionate kiss. Grimmjow jerked as a second finger was added, whining a bit into his lover's mouth.

"I didn't forget. We both know you're a closet masochist." Ichigo said teasingly and Grimmjow would have denied it, if his body weren't agreeing so much. His cock was hard as a rock and that was a pleasant burn going on, where those dry fingers were stretching him out. But…

"Okay, fine, I fucking love it. But if you take me without lube I'm going to beat your ass." He growled, hooking his legs over Ichigo's shoulders. He was very flexible and his partner loved to make use of that. Ichigo muttered something but finally got out the lube. They knew he needed it, or he wouldn't be walking tomorrow. Even when they were indulging his fetish for pain, they had to think of the future. Then three fingers, coated in cold oil, went inside him and Grimmjow arched off the bed with a cry. That hurt but in _such_ a good way.

"God, you sound so sexy." Ichigo's tone was breathless now and Grimmjow cracked open one eye. He'd screwed them tightly shut in the throes of his passion and pain. So now he was treated with the vision of Ichigo's wide brown eyes, the way he had to swallow back drool as he positioned himself. Grimmjow tensed for a moment then gasped as his body was suddenly invaded. "Oh fuck!" Ichigo cursed, gripping his hips and shoving in until he was flush with Grimmjow's ass.

"ICHI!" Grimmjow almost howled his name, overcome by the wanton pleasure. It always felt so fucking good when Ichigo did this to him, so good that he almost wanted it to happen again and again. Of course, there was a reason why it wouldn't but thoughts of that were wiped away as Ichigo began to move. "Oh FUCK yes!" He didn't give a damn who heard them. The other people in this crappy inn could go fuck themselves, and that Urahara pervert could wank for all he cared. All he cared about was the cock in his ass, the hands on hips and cock, the way he was being fucked.

Ichigo set a slow but powerful pace and Grimmjow whined and gasped at the pleasant burn, the jagged pleasure as the other rubbed his steel hard length across his prostate. That was _so_ fucking nice, so delicious that he could hardly stand it. He rocked his hips back, whining for more and Ichigo's heavy breathing reached his ears before the other spoke.

"Scream for my Grimm. Scream my name." Ichigo demanded but Grimmjow snarled, unwilling to give in so quickly. No, he was going to make Ichigo work for it.

And work he did. The pace picked up and Grimmjow howled as a heavy thumb ran down the length of his cock, pressing wickedly on the head. He felt like he might fly apart but there was a sting and he glanced down, horrified, to see a cock ring had been secured around his base.

"Ichi~! Fuck!" He cursed as that thumb teased him again. "NnnnAUGH!" Grimmjow roared as his body rocked into the bed, bouncing with the force of Ichigo's thrusts. Sweat was beading on pale skin, falling down in small droplets, and Grimmjow didn't care. His own skin was covered in a sheen of sweat. "Ichigo!" He pleaded with his boyfriend, desperately thrusting his hips back and meeting every movement.

"Who am I Grimm?" Ichigo demanded, his brown eyes alight with intense pleasure. Grimmjow gasped, writhing in his grip. He wanted release, needed release, and he knew what he had to do to get it.

"You are… the King! My… fucking King!" He roared. He had no idea why Ichigo liked hearing those words from him. But on the rare occasions that Ichigo wanted to top him, that was always what he wanted to hear. As far as Grimmjow was concerned, that was fine. Ichigo was the King of his world. The cock ring was pulled away and Ichigo went to town, thrusting into him with insane speed and force. "GYA!" Grimmjow screamed as he came, his seed splattering them both and reaching so high that a few drops landed on his cheek. Ichigo followed a moment later with his own cry, his back arching as his body went taunt with the force of his orgasm. Grimmjow grunted as he felt the hot seed filling him, but didn't protest. This was fine. In fact, this was better than fine, this was fucking excellent.

"Grimm." Coming down from the high of their brutal and passionate coupling, Ichigo laced his fingers with him. Grimmjow looked up, exhausted, and returned Ichigo's smile. The expression was so warm and loving, how could he not? "I love you."

"I love you too, Ichi-berry." He said hoarsely then sighed as Ichigo pulled away, letting his legs fall back onto the bed. "Unh." He was sticky and covered in sweat, but he felt much too tired to move. He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them as he felt a cloth across his skin. It was Ichigo, taking care of him the way he'd taken care of the redhead, so many times.

"Go to sleep. I'll take care of this." Ichigo said before giving him a warm kiss. Grimmjow accepted the tenderness and just relaxed, closing his eyes and letting himself fall into a light doze.

He wouldn't sleep long, but it would be enough to let him start recovering from the pounding he'd just taken.

* * *

"Ow." Grimmjow muttered as he adjusted his clothing.

It was always like this. Every time he let Ichigo top, the sex was absolutely mind blowing. And then he would pay for it when he tried to move. Walking was incredibly painful at the moment, and it wasn't a sexy kind of pain. No, this was just sucksville. But there was no choice but to live with it and Grimmjow grit his teeth, sucking it up. It did make him wonder how Ichigo managed to do it all the time. But then, he prepared the redhead a hell of a lot better than he'd been prepped. And Ichigo did it all the time. It got easier with practice.

"Sorry." He heard and glanced over at Ichigo as he gingerly took a seat at the table. That hurt too, like his ass had been chafed completely raw. Ichigo was looking guilty at the pain he'd caused.

"Don't worry about it." Grimmjow waved it away as Ichigo bit his lip. "I've fucked you how many times? I'll be fine." Ichigo handled his cock all the time. If he couldn't take it the other way once in a while he was just a pussy. His lover sighed, looking down into his tea.

"I'm so rough with you when we do that. I'm not sure why." He admitted and Grimmjow just shrugged.

"Don't care. I liked it, just don't want to make a habit of it. But we'll be here for a week, I've got plenty of time to get over my ass chafe." He said and Ichigo snorted into his tea. "What's for – ah." Urahara came over, holding two bowls of stew. Byakuya had the other two, and he was looking quite unamused by his demotion to waiter.

"Supper is served! Don't ask what the meat is." He said cheerfully and Grimmjow stopped reaching for the bowl. He and Ichigo exchanged a nauseated glance before Grimmjow leaned back and scowled. "Oh, come! I never thought you would be fastidious about that." Kisuke said with a laugh and Ichigo grimaced.

"Fastidious? Hardly! We'll eat grubs and cockroaches! We just want to know what they are." Grimmjow snapped and Ichigo nodded.

"Is this cockroaches? I'm fine with bugs." Ichigo stirred the stew dubiously. "It doesn't look like bugs." He said distrustfully and Grimmjow noticed that Byakuya was giving them a strange look.

"If insects don't bother you, what could?" He asked and Grimmjow winced as Ichigo grimaced again. This was really making him lose his appetite.

"You want to know? Have you ever heard of long pork?" He asked sourly, expecting that they hadn't. But Kisuke surprised him.

"It's an euphemism for human flesh." He supplied cheerfully and Grimmjow blinked as Ichigo took a big drink of his tea.

"Well, shit! Too bad you weren't in Santa Maria when one of our butchers went completely, utterly bat-shit insane and started selling it at cut rate prices." He said sourly and Kisuke tilted his hat back, his eyes wide. Byakuya actually looked horrified, a bit of expression getting past that mask of his. "I swear, everyone in the town fucking ate it before we caught on to the disappearances. We were going to hang him, but a mob got to him first. They broke into his warehouse, found where he'd been keeping the bodies, then tore him to pieces." Grimmjow had approved. It had been messy and highly appropriate.

"I ate it at least twice. I feel sick." Ichigo muttered, putting his forehead on the table. Grimmjow sneered at him.

"Shit! Twice? I ate it at least five times. The entire fucking town ate it!" He took a gulp of his tea, trying to wash the foul taste of his mouth. "So now we want to know what the meat is. It can be rat, cat, dog, we don't care. Just not long pork." The thought made his skin crawl. There had been a lot of people purging themselves, after they'd found out the truth.

"I – I see." Kisuke said faintly. "But that was one insane man, Grimmjow-kun. I'm sure these people aren't crazy… or that desperate." He added and Grimmjow sighed, looking at his stew.

"I guess you're right." He allowed before taking a tentative mouthful. After a few seconds of chewing, he relaxed. "Tastes like rat to me." Long pork tasted like pork, which was vastly different from rat. Ichigo took a bit of his and nodded. Suspicions mostly assuaged, they dug into their meal. Byakuya blinked, looking at the food in revulsion for a moment before sighing and trying it. Grimmjow had a feeling that rat was not up to his usual standards.

"This is even worse than the mushroom beer." He muttered as he sampled the horrible liquid they'd been served. It tasted like vinegar, which was probably what it was, at least partially. Cider that had gone almost completely off? "Shit." Grimmjow thought longingly of clean water. Water you could drink. Was it really too much to ask?

"They serve something better but it's expensive and far more alcoholic." Kisuke said apologetically and Ichigo waved it away as Grimmjow grunted.

"This is fine. Expensive might be okay, but we don't need to get drunk around this place." Ichigo glanced around the room dubiously and Grimmjow followed his gaze. He could see what his lover meant. This was a decent inn that catered to what looked like the criminal element. There were a lot of people with wicked scars and other shit. Although, this could be the watering hole for the local equivalent of the Eleventh. The fighters of the Eleventh wore their scars proudly. Grimmjow doubted it, though.

They finished their meal and Kisuke and Byakuya began plotting their next move. Grimmjow felt a pressure building and pulled himself to his feet, grunting at the pain in his backside.

"I'm going to find a wall." He said to Ichigo's questioning look and the ginger nodded, going back to his stew. They'd already established that this place didn't follow normal standards of cleanliness. The usual way to piss was just to find a wall and let fly. Grimmjow didn't mind. He'd watered plenty of trees in his time. Leaving the inn, he found a nearby alleyway and undid his pants, freeing himself to take care of business.

"Mister?" He glanced up, surprised and annoyed at having his piss interrupted. He didn't stop though, just letting it all hang out. When you had to go, you had to go. "Mister, you lookin' for somethin'?" Grimmjow drew his lips away from his teeth in a half-snarl as he got a good look at the girl accosting him.

"Even if I was, I wouldn't be looking for a fucking baby." He said rudely. But the girl couldn't possibly be older than fourteen. She wasn't even really pubescent, skinny as a board and looking malnourished. Her hair was black and lanky, falling just to her shoulders. The only attractive thing about her was her eyes, which were large and very dark. "Scram." He growled as he finished buckling himself up. He started to turn away –

Then whirled with blinding speed and caught the girl's wrist. A tiny blade shone in the dim light of the evening sun and he lifted his lips from his teeth in a snarl. The girl screamed as he caught her by the throat, slamming her against the wall. Pitiless blue eyes watched as she gripped his wrist, gagging. Grimmjow knew she was just a kid, but he didn't care. She'd tried to knife him in the back. The little bitch could have killed him, if he'd been just a touch less alert. Blue eyes narrowed as his grip tightened –

"Grimm? What's taking so long – Karin?!" Grimmjow blinked, his grip on the girl loosening as he looked over at his lover. He was staring at the girl in his grip with an expression like nothing Grimmjow had ever seen from him before. "Karin!" He ran towards them and Grimmjow let the girl's feet touch the ground, but didn't let go of her throat and squeezed her wrist. She took the hint and dropped the knife just as Ichigo hugged her tightly. "Grimmjow, let go of her!" Ichigo demanded and he pulled his hand away, watching with some satisfaction as she rubbed her throat. There'd be a wicked bruise there tomorrow. "Why'd you do that?!" Grimmjow blinked as he realized that Ichigo was genuinely pissed at him.

"Ichi?" He didn't get a chance to answer, though, as the girl croaked out his lover's name. She was staring at him, her dark eyes filling with tears. "Ichi-nii…!" She flung her arms around him, sobbing, and Ichigo whispered soothing nothings in her ear. Grimmjow's eyes widened a bit at that. Ichi-nii?

"Brother?" He asked out loud. "Well, shit." This was going to be a complication. But it wasn't one Ichigo could turn aside from. Picking up the discarded knife, he bounced it a bit in his palm before hiding it away. He'd hang onto it until these two got their shit together. So he stood watch, his glare warning away any passersby until the family reunion moment passed.

When it did, Ichigo was back to being pissed with him.

"Why did you do that Grimm? Why?!" Ichigo demanded of him, his gaze hard and furious. Grimmjow scowled and pulled out the confiscated knife.

"Because I take offense to having steel shoved into my back, that's why." He said bluntly and Ichigo blinked before looking at Karin in horror. She avoided his gaze. "She's lucky you showed up when you did, I was gonna kill her." And he wouldn't have felt guilty about it. His life was just as precious as hers, and she'd tried to take it away.

"Karin… why…?" Ichigo asked softly and his sister choked on a sob.

"I – I had to Ichi! Yuzu's sick! She's sick and I can't make enough money selling myself, I had to steal it, I'm sorry – I'm sorry – " She kept repeating that as Ichigo hugged her again, his expression stricken. Brown eyes met blue and Grimmjow could see the horror in them, and he knew why.

"It ain't your fault Ichi. You couldn't remember." He said firmly. That was where Ichigo's mind would be going. His sister had been selling herself for food and he hadn't done a single thing to help her. He would be blaming himself, but he shouldn't. He couldn't remember, how could it be his fault? "We just have to make it better now." He added and Ichigo swallowed hard before rubbing Karin's back, drawing gentle circles on his skin.

"Take us to Yuzu, Karin. We'll help you." He said gently and Grimmjow wondered when he'd been volunteered. It was true though. First impressions aside, he'd do anything to make Ichigo happy.

Helping his family certainly qualified.


	6. Exploring the Slums

Author's note: Put up and taken down to to an annoying logic error. My bad.

* * *

The girls were indeed a complication.

Yuzu had a bad case of pneumonia. That was what Urahara said, and Grimmjow was inclined to agree. He'd seen a few cases in the Division, usually after someone got a dunking in cold water in the middle of winter. Everyone had pulled through, but they were young and strong and had Rukia to help.

Yuzu was young but she wasn't strong, and the local apothecaries were no Rukia. Grimmjow grimaced as he watched Ichigo tuck another blanket around the young woman. She was as stick thin as her sister, her hair dry and breaking, her cheeks rosy with the fever.

"I'll go see if this place has any sponges and soup." He offered and Ichigo looked up with a nod. It was a trick they'd learned a while ago. Someone who was just a bit conscious would suck on a sponge, if it was placed between their lips. If she wasn't too far gone, Yuzu would still have that reflex. Swallowing afterwards came naturally, so they'd be able to get a bit of food in her.

"She still wakes up. She can eat." Karin said nervously and Grimmjow nodded. He had a feeling she'd be happier when he was out of the room. Well, he had come pretty close to killing her. He wasn't really holding a grudge at this point though. These poor kids had had it rough.

Leaving the room, he tended to business. The inn only had the stew they'd been fed, but after a bit of searching he found a place offering what they claimed was chicken soup. He insisted on trying a bit and the taste was good, so he got a nice big bowl of it to take back to Yuzu. They charged him extra for the bowl, which was annoying but expected. When he got back Urahara was there, preparing an herbal tea he'd gotten from the apothecary. They would have to hope it did some good.

"Oh… Karin…?" Yuzu roused with a moan as her sister shook her shoulder, and Grimmjow grinned. She hadn't woken up at all when Ichigo had carried her here, so he'd thought she was in really dire straights. Maybe he'd been mistaken. "What… where…?" She looked around in confusion and then her eyes went wide as she saw Ichigo. "Ichi-nii!" She tried to sit up but he rested a hand on her shoulder.

"It's alright Yuzu. I'm here now." He said comfortingly before taking the soup from Grimmjow. Yuzu managed to feed herself, although her hands were shaking. She paused her eating to give her brother a smile, and Grimmjow blinked at the warmth in it. It was like a ray of sunshine in the room.

"I knew you would come back for us Ichi-nii." She said quietly and Grimmjow winced to himself as Ichigo looked down. He knew how much that would hurt.

"I – I didn't remember you. I'm sorry Yuzu, I'm so sorry." His voice was husky and Grimmjow knelt down beside his boyfriend, putting an arm around his shoulders. Ichigo leaned against him, taking the comfort offered. "If I'd known I would have come sooner." Yuzu smiled again before eating more soup.

"It's okay Ichi. Karin couldn't remember you either, she said I was imagining things. But I knew you were real." She sounded so happy and Ichigo laughed a little as Karin scowled, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Well, you made him sound like a mythical creature." She groused. "Big, strong, powerful, amazing! I admit, he is pretty cool though." She said grudgingly. "Even if he is with the bluebell." Ichigo shot her a horrified look before glancing at Grimmjow, expecting some kind of explosion. But his lover just snorted.

"Bluebell? Not very creative, kid. You'll have to try harder than that to piss me off." Grimmjow met her glare with a lazy, catlike stare and Karin looked away first, muttering something under her breath. Urahara brought over the tea and gave Yuzu an examination as Ichigo watched anxiously.

"She's really doing quite well given her general condition." He said, but his usual good cheer was notably absent. "However, I estimate that it will take her a month to fully recover." Kisuke said and Ichigo bit his lip. "Ichigo, we just can't stay that long. We need to continue our mission."

"So get a really posh tent, some nice blankets and take her along." Grimmjow said and everyone stared at him. "A donkey too if we can afford one."

"Grimm! We can't drag a sick girl through the howling wilderness!" Ichigo said, horrified by the thought and Grimmjow shrugged.

"Then we're stayin' here for a month. We can't leave them, for fuck's sake." He pointed out and Ichigo stopped, looking sick. Karin was looking at him with a shocked expression. "Even if you and I bust heads all week there's no way we can leave enough respect to keep 'em safe while we're gone. Sure as shit, someone will rob them and then they'll both be turning tricks on street corners again." It was all so clear to him, what needed to be done. Ichigo's shoulders slumped as he thought it over, taking in the truth of the matter.

"You're right." He said before straightening his shoulders and looking at Urahara. "We're staying until she's better. The worlds have survived for two years, they'll make it another month." He said decisively and Grimmjow grinned, clapping him on the shoulder. He liked it when Ichigo took charge. Urahara sighed, then brightened slightly.

"Well, perhaps I can speed her recovery! Grimmjow-kun, would you like to go with me into the woods while I look for medicinal herbs? Ichigo-kun, you and Byakuya should stay with the two of them. This place is rather horrid." He said and Yuzu looked puzzled as Karin frowned.

"It seems nice to me…" She glanced over the room, which was pretty much clean and the blankets which didn't have much in the way of fleas. Actually, if there were any fleas they'd probably been brought in with the girls. Ichigo sighed.

"It might be the best this place has, but it's not as good as Santa Maria. That's the town Grimm and I come from. I wish you had ended up there… you would have had a better life." He said sadly and Grimmjow nodded. Even if Ichigo hadn't been there, they would have been better off. Santa Maria had an orphanage and the Division managed it. They frowned heavily on underage whores.

"Really? What was it like?" Yuzu asked and Grimmjow stood up, checking himself over quickly. He had his sword, his grappling hook and his water bottle. Although it was full of that horrible stuff the inn served, not honest water. Leaving the family to their reunion, he followed Urahara out.

They had stuff to do and it wouldn't wait.

* * *

Ichigo rubbed his eyes for a moment as he sat with his sisters.

As soon as he saw Karin, the memories had come back. Not all of them, and it was still very unclear, but it was like a bubble had been popped in his mind. That bubble had held his two sisters and now he knew them again. Karin had been a tomboy, very tough and independent. Yuzu had been the peaceful one, doing the cooking and trying to make the house a home. They had been like that because… because…

The thought slipped away from him and the harder he tried to grasp it, the quicker it vanished. He knew there was something painful but also very important at the end of that thought but he just couldn't find it. Finally giving up he looked at Karin.

"So what's the story with the bluebell, Ichi-nii?" She asked bluntly and Yuzu gasped.

"Karin! Please be nicer." She pleaded with her sister who scowled, sitting back and crossing her arms over her chest. "What's his name Ichigo? You seem to like him." Yuzu asked and Ichigo smiled. That was putting it mildly.

"His name is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez. We met in Santa Maria when we both signed up for the Eleventh. It was funny… the first thing he did when he saw me was challenge me to an arm wrestling match. I lost of course." Ichigo wasn't ashamed to admit that. In terms of brute strength, Grimmjow had an edge over him. He had a slight edge in speed, though. "Then I bought him a drink, he bought me a drink and before you knew it we were roommates." It had all just come together. Grimmjow had needed someone to share the rent with and Ichigo had been new in town. It had clicked. "We could remember each other a little, and we started a friendly competition to see who could get more monster kills. Then one day, after a battle… he kissed me." Ichigo could still remember that moment. It had been a rough kiss, full of sharp teeth and blazing blue eyes. Karin looked a bit squicked out but Yuzu was staring at him in fascination. "After that, we just got together." It had all flowed naturally. Everything he did with Grimmjow seemed to be instinctive, natural.

"He makes you happy." Yuzu said with a smile as Karin looked away.

"He almost killed me." She grumbled and Yuzu blinked at her in surprise before giving Ichigo a questioning look. She wasn't horrified, though, and Ichigo felt a stab of sadness. The Yuzu he remembered would have been horrified by that.

"You did try to stab him in the back." He pointed out. And Grimm was right, that could very easily have killed him. Karin sighed and ran a hand through her hair. It was exactly the same length he remembered. In a lot of ways, the girls hadn't changed at all.

"Yeah, I guess. I just… that look on his face when he grabbed me. I was sure I was going to die, you know?" She said and Ichigo nodded sympathetically. He knew how vicious Grimmjow could be when he was pissed. Although his 'playful' moments could be even worse, for a real opponent.

"Well, just remember, he'll help me protect you. And no one's brave enough to stand up to him when he gives them his trademark psychotic grin." Ichigo said encouragingly and Karin managed a weak smile as Yuzu laughed softly.

"Yeah, I'll bet." Karin yawned before glancing at Yuzu. "Should we share a bed?" It was the bed Ichigo and Grimmjow had been using so it was plenty big enough. He nodded.

"Grimm and I will get a new room." It wasn't like they were attached to this one and the inn had plenty of rooms free. "Karin, do you think you could show me around the town later, after Grimm and Kisuke get back?" He wasn't sure where Byakuya had gotten to but he wasn't around, and Ichigo was not going to leave Yuzu alone. Karin nodded.

"Sure Ichi-nii. Right now though, I'm going to have a nap." She said and taking his cue, Ichigo left the room. He went down to arrange another with the innkeeper, smiling sadly to himself as he thought of his sisters. He was glad he'd found them again but he couldn't help the painful guilt that racked him as he thought of their circumstances. Why hadn't he remembered them sooner? Running a hand over his face, then through his hair, he tried to force the feeling away. Grimmjow was right. It wasn't his fault.

It was hard not to feel that way, though.

* * *

"Grimm, you're back! …What happened?" Ichigo said in surprise as he looked at Urahara. The shopkeeper was sporting a rather impressive black eye. Grimmjow grinned nastily as he remembered.

"Someone asked me what I thought of a bunch of herbs. When I bent over to look, he felt up my ass." Grimmjow said and Ichigo's surprise turned into anger. He gave Kisuke a nasty look and the shopkeeper tried to look innocent. "So I decked him. All taken care of." He didn't need Ichigo to protect his rather dubious virtue.

"It was a misunderstanding! I tripped and my hand went the wrong place." Urahara protested and got skeptical looks from them both. "Why does no one believe me?"

"Because we know you. If you're that hard up, go find a whore." Ichigo retorted, then thought better of it. "Actually, don't, you'll catch some horrible disease." Kisuke nodded mournfully as he took a seat.

"Just rub one out." Grimmjow said with a grin before looking around. Sensing the presence of customers, one of the barmaids came over to see if they wanted anything. He placed an order for food and drink as Kisuke sighed.

"I've been doing that for two whole years. My left arm is getting overdeveloped. I really don't suppose the two of you would…?" He gave them a pathetic look and Ichigo didn't have to think twice.

"No way." He said firmly. They'd never brought anyone else into their relationship before and he didn't want to start now. And he felt zero attraction to the shopkeeper. Grimmjow nodded. "Now that you guys are back, can you watch over Yuzu for me? I want to go check out the place with Karin and Byakuya hasn't come back yet." That was a little odd but he wasn't worried. Kisuke and Byakuya were both fearsome fighters, he'd seen it on the way there. Kisuke nodded.

"He's looking for any survivors from the Gotei 13 and his family. He was so happy to see the new Eleventh, you know." He said and Ichigo blinked. He honestly hadn't noticed any happiness but Byakuya was hard to read.

"Mind if I come too? Yuzu doesn't need more than one watcher." Grimmjow asked and Ichigo nodded.

"Sure, I'd like to have you at my back." Karin might not be as thrilled but his sister and Grimmjow needed to get past their rough meeting. And Grimm was already past it, really. Ichigo could tell that only Karin was holding a bit of a grudge. He waited patiently as Grimmjow inhaled his stew, and then they were ready to go.

Karin's tour of the town revealed that it was rather large, bigger than Santa Maria. It was very badly run but no one dared complain, and she quietly explained why.

"The tyrant doesn't take any shit, Ichi." She said and Ichigo grimaced. "He's… no one knows exactly what he is, they say he's half monster. He's eaten people who pissed him off." She shivered and Ichigo and Grimmjow exchanged a glance. They lived to kill monsters. But…

"Ain't no point. If we killed him and didn't stay, there'd be something just as bad in place tomorrow." Grimmjow said and Ichigo sighed before nodding. That was exactly what he'd been thinking. Yumichika and Ikkaku had killed off a few bully boys when they'd turned Santa Maria from a refugee camp into a real town, from what he'd heard. Unless they were going to stay and make a proper job of fixing this place there was just no point. Karin gave them both a wide eyed look.

"You seriously think you could kill the tyrant?" She said, perhaps a little too loudly as someone hurried away. Grimmjow laughed, not giving a crap who heard him.

"Together, we can kill anything!" Ichigo smiled as a hand slapped down on his shoulder. He turned his head to look into Grimmjow's face, enjoying his wicked grin and the fire in blue eyes. "We've taken out giants, you know. So far he's got two kills, I've got one and we've got three we're sharing." Sharing meant they had worked together to bring the enemy down. Giants often took a lot of killing and using one person as a distraction while the other got in a killing blow was a preferred tactic.

"The other three kills are shared too, technically. I'm sharing one with Yumi and the other with Hannes." Ichigo said and Grimmjow nodded.

"True, I'm sharing mine with Ikkaku. It's always a group effort." He said, cleaning out his era with a pinky finger as he looked around. Then he grimaced as he saw a stretch of the wall. It was looking particularly battered in this area, clearly patched recently. "Who the fuck built this piece of shit and why aren't they hanging from the nearest lamppost?" He demanded and Karin shrugged.

"I don't think anyone really built it. People just… try to put it back together, when something gets through." She said and they exchanged a look. That wasn't good at all. "What do you think it should look like?" She asked and Ichigo answered.

"It should be stone, and at least a foot thick, more if you can manage it. The walls around Santa Maria are about three feet thick." He said and Grimmjow nodded. They'd both been involved in building and repairing those walls. They might not be masons but they knew the basics. "That kind of wall will defeat a giant. They mostly don't come by anymore." At first, giants had gone through the fields in an effort to enter the town and the Division had killed them. But over time they'd stopped showing up. Now they were mostly encountered in the forest around the mine, which was lighter than where the logging happened. Giants were big enough that they disliked heavy forests.

"That sounds like the inner walls." Karin said and Ichigo blinked in surprise as Grimmjow grunted.

"Let me guess. The good part of town has separate walls?" He said sourly and Ichigo winced. That was the sort of thing Grimm would expect, he was very cynical about human nature. Karin nodded. "Figures. Can we go take a look?"

"Sure, if we don't get too close." Karin sounded a little nervous at the prospect and Ichigo scowled to himself, his mood darkening. This place was just… he didn't have words for it. Santa Maria wasn't perfect, it was a military dictatorship in a lot of ways, but they didn't leave the poor people behind crappy walls while protecting the rich.

"This place is big, isn't it?" Grimmjow muttered as they walked and Ichigo nodded. He'd noticed that as well.

"About twice as big as Santa Maria." That would make running this place more difficult, but hardly insurmountable. Santa Maria wasn't exactly big, so this place wasn't huge either. "I really wish we could stay and beat this place into shape." He said with a sigh and Grimmjow shrugged.

"Can't kill all the starfish in the sea." He said and Ichigo smiled. That was a reversal of the original saying, one the oyster farmers had come up with. They hated starfish, they were predators of helpless, immobile oysters. "Hey, look at that shit – ow!" Grimmjow winced as Ichigo slapped up upside the head.

"Pull your tongue back in. Although it is impressive." He grudgingly admitted, glancing over the whorehouse as Karin sniggered. The girls hanging around on the balconies, partly undressed, made it clear what the building was for. They were quite attractive, too, and one of them had lovely butterfly wings. That sort of thing was rare but not unknown and Kisuke said it was a sign of an unbroken hollow that had made the leap to a human like form. Arrancar usually became completely human, but unbroken adjuchas and vasto lorde were different. Ichigo paused to admire them. They were dappled with rainbow colors, reminding him of a soap bubble. Then he winced as Grimmjow slapped him on the shoulder.

"Yeah, you pull your tongue in too. We going?" He said with a grin and Ichigo smiled before shoving his shoulder against his lover. Grimmjow returned the affection and they started off again.

It didn't take too long to reach the inner wall and Ichigo looked it over with a frown. It was better than the outer wall, made of strong stone, but it was too short. One of the taller giants could possibly go over it. It didn't look thick enough, either. It was manned by guards who were definitely a cut above the idiots looking after the wooden walls, though. They gave them narrow eyed looks and one hefted a crossbow. Grimmjow just put his hands on his hips and grinned up at them with his usual, psychotic grin. There was a hissed warning and the fellow lowered the crossbow a touch.

"They can tell you're insane, you can stop now." Ichigo said and Grimmjow shrugged, glancing away as though he'd lost interest. "I take it we can't go inside?" He asked Karin who nodded nervously.

"No. They keep out any undesirables." She said and they both nodded before moving on. Karin's stomach growled and they looked around for a bit before stopping at a street vendor selling sausages.

"And cook them good." Grimmjow growled as the man turned the little sausages over his bed of coals. "I don't want to catch any shit." The sausage vendor nodded, completely unperturbed, and the sausages they got were so well done they were black on the outside. Ichigo didn't mind a bit. Better a bit of char than some horrible illness.

As they ate Ichigo just leaned against a wall, watching the crowds go by. The more he looked, the less he liked this place. It was filthy, the people were starving and the people in charge didn't care. It went against every instinct he owned to just leave them like this. But what choice did he have? He needed to save the three worlds.

He was still thinking about that when there was a loud crack, the sound of tearing lumber. Grimmjow wolfed down his sausage before pulling out his sword and Ichigo followed his lead, swallowing what was left of his whole. It scraped unpleasantly going down and he grimaced before drawing his weapon.

"That was the wall. Come on, we're close to the inner wall, we can get away easily!" Karin said urgently and Ichigo scowled as Grimmjow shook his head.

"Run? What kind of pussies do we look like? C'mon Ichi, let's take care of this shit. You stay close girl!" He said and Ichigo nodded. Close to them was probably the safest place for Karin. They could keep an eye on her and kill anything that tried for her.

When they found it, the breach was bad. A giant had busted through and was doing massive damage. Ichigo grimaced as it grabbed a screaming woman and bit her in half. Blood sprayed everywhere, along with guts and other things, but he paid it no mind. He'd seen worse in his day.

"Grimm, you play distraction. I'll kill it." He said, cool as a cucumber and Grimmjow nodded, flying into action as his grappling hook shot out. This was where Ichigo shone and he didn't, so he was more than willing to take his lover's instructions.

It went very well. The distraction lasted a while, because it had to. A basic getsuga tenshou was easy for Ichigo to fire off, and it could devastate a bone fiend. But to take out a giant he needed to muster his power and release it all in one burst. Grimmjow had a completely different method of making giant kills. When he did it, he generally used a very careful targeted lacerate or if he was near something tall enough, he used his grappling hook and flying ability to reach the giant's neck. A single slash on the right spot would bleed them out in short order.

Now, though, Grimmjow was dancing through the air and just slashing any part he could reach. The giant roared and lumbered after him, infuriated and too stupid to notice the dangerous flare of black and red building on the ground. Ichigo grimaced as Grimmjow just barely dodged a huge fist, the rush of air making his brown leather jacket fly in the wind. He needed just a bit longer…

"GETSUGA TENSHOU!" The blast of black and red hit the giant like a slice of heaven. It was neatly sliced into two and Grimmjow swore as he dodged one of the halves, barely avoiding being flattened. Then he dropped to the ground as Ichigo looked around alertly for more intruders. There was nothing, but that was no surprise. None of the other monsters liked being around a giant.

However, there were a lot of people looking at them in awe. Grimmjow grimaced, realizing they were the center of attention. Then something occurred to him and he grinned wickedly.

"HEY! If you fuckers are going to stand there staring, you can get to work!" He barked at the gawkers and there was mass confusion. "You see that busted wall? Fix it you fuckers! Now!" His roar was impressive and many people took off, not wanting to deal with him or manual labor. Some people actually started towards the wall, which pleased him. A hand fell on his shoulder and Grimmjow looked to meet brown eyes and a friendly smile.

"Good work on the distraction." Ichigo complimented him and Grimmjow preened a little before returning the sentiment.

"Great job on that getsuga, you cut it in half like nothin'." That really had been a good one. "So should we head back to the inn? It's getting late." They'd been walking a long time. If they started back now they might get back before the sun set. Ichigo nodded, squeezing his shoulder before letting go.

"Yeah, let's go. Karin?" They both turned to the girl and Grimmjow was surprised to see that she was looking at them with something like shock on her face. Hadn't she known what her brother was capable of? "Karin?" Ichigo sounded worried now and she blinked before shaking her head.

"Wow, Ichi-nii, that was… I see why you think you could take on the tyrant." She said and Grimmjow grinned. "And that stuff you did in the air… how'd you do that?" She asked him and the blue man shrugged as they started to walk.

"I can fly a little. Combine it with my grappling hook and I'm an air dancer." He said proudly. "It took a while to master." He'd flown into buildings quite a few times before he'd gotten the hang of it. His nose had gotten the brunt of that, with several bad nosebleeds and one break. Fortunately it had healed nice and straight or he wouldn't be nearly as pretty.

"I can imagine…" Karin shook her head, still a bit awed, and Ichigo smiled as he saw that Grimmjow was eating it up. The blue man would never admit it, but he loved having admirers. Not of his looks or even his sexual prowess, but of his skill on the battlefield. That was what he had pride in, the thing that defined him the most. It might be a little psychotic but that was Grimmjow.

And Ichigo wouldn't have it any other way.


End file.
